


Amor Arma Ministrat

by VictoryanBladeFair



Series: For those who have an unknown past and an uncertain future [4]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Incredible Hulk
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Avengers Family, Avengers Tower, Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Awesome Natasha Romanov, Awkward Boners, Awkward Dates, Barton Family, Betrayal, Black Widow - Freeform, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes's Metal Arm, Bucky and OFC had a thing in the past too, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Clint Barton is back from his "Vacation", Clint Is a Good Bro, Cockblocking, Dark Thoughts, Difficult Decisions, Dorks in Love, Eventual Smut, F/M, Falling In Love, First Dates, Flirting, Fluff and Smut, Forbidden Love, Friendship/Love, Glenn Talbot (AoS), Holding Hands, Hurt Steve Rogers, I Love You, I didn't know I was pregnant, I forgot to include hawkeye, Living Together, Loyalty, Matchmaker Natasha Romanov, Melinda May - Freeform, Nat is a perfect bestie, Natasha Feels, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Nicknames, OFC still loves Bucky, Pietro Maximoff Feels, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Pre-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Pre-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Pre-HYDRA Reveal, Pregnancy, Pregnant OFC, Protective Avengers, Protective Clint Barton, Random OCs - Freeform, Rumlow and OFC had a thing in the past, Russian Kink, SHIELD, Sarcasm, Sexual Content, Sexy Times, Skye | Daisy Johnson - Freeform, Slow Build, Steve Rogers/OFC smut, Swearing, Tags Are Hard, Tags Contain Spoilers, The Bus, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, Tony Being Tony, Unplanned Pregnancy, Virginity, Wanda Maximoff Needs a Hug, We All Know What's Coming, Where Was Clint Barton During Captain America 2?, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, but OFC loves Steve too, captain america is even more handsome, conflicted feelings, even when she kisses someone else's boyfriend, everyone has a nickname - but not all know what it is, is there a limit to tags?, look how many tags I added, phil coulson - Freeform, speaking in Russian, you didn't see that coming?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-18
Updated: 2017-06-10
Packaged: 2018-10-20 13:22:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 24
Words: 62,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10663497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VictoryanBladeFair/pseuds/VictoryanBladeFair
Summary: Amor Arma MinistratLove supplies arms (weapons) [to lovers so that they may be grateful to the loved one].Steve slowly starts falling for Viktoria, but every time they try to have a normal date, Shield cockblocks.Eventually, Viktoria finds herself torn apart between SHIELD and HYDRA, making it difficult for her to lie with a straight face to her friends and lover.What will she decide to do once the Winter Soldier is woken up from his cold slumber and SHIELD is about to fall?For those who have an unknown past and an uncertain futureSeries:Part 1:The Winter Soldier and The Arctic FoxPart 2:Si Vis Pacem, Para BellumPart 3:Dulce Bellum InexpertisPart 4:Amor Arma MinistratPart 5:Peace is just a Temporary State of War





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Finally, Part 4 of the Series is up, and I couldn't be feeling more proud of myself for reaching this point. I remember when I started the first fic, unsure of the furute outcome, but I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.
> 
> I hope you like this one too and support my work. Leave kudos and comments if you're liking it, I would really appreciate to read your honest opinions. Thank you (:
> 
>  
> 
>  **Mentions** of _blood_ and _injuries_.

Everything was perfect. I was wearing a cute dress, hair was styled in pretty curls, flawless makeup on my face. Steve sat in the chair opposite of mine, occasionally lifting up his blue eyes from the menu in his hands to glance at me with a smile on his lips. His short hair had been brushed back, a dark blue shirt hugging his toned chest and muscled arms. I smiled back when I caught his gazing at me, and he shyly looked back down at his menu. 

The waitress came to take our orders, eyes drooling at the sight of Steve. "Good evening, may I take your orders?" The restaurant where we made a reservation ended up being a very nice place, with candle lights and quite some privacy from other guests as the tables were pretty far from one another.

Steve looked at me and smiled. "Ladies first."

I chuckled at his chivalry and gave one last glance at the menu before looking up at the jealous waitress. "Uhm, rib eye with bone marrow and radish salad." I said, then turned to Steve.

He seemed to have forgotten his order for a moment, then glanced nervously at the menu in his hands and read out aloud one random pick. "Pork chop with apple and celery root salad..." Just as he had finished saying that, both of our phones beeped, distracting us from the waitress. I pulled out my phone from the bag and had the same reaction as Steve. Apparently, we got the same call. He sighed out in frustration, shaking his head. "I'm sorry..." He gave me an apologizing look.

My mood was ruined too, making me lower my eyes at the empty plate in front of me and shake my head. "This is the third time."

The waitress moved her eyes between the two of us in confusion, furrowed brows. "Shall I get the receipt for the wine?" The woman asked awkwardly, lowering her small notebook and pen.

"Yes, please." I said annoyed, resting my chin on the back of my hand as I leaned my right elbow on the table. A sad look on my face. As soon as the waitress left us alone, I glanced over at Steve. "Leave it to me, you paid for the wine the last two times..."

Shield could really be a pain in the ass. Alway calling us on duty when we had other plans. It was almost as if they were doing it on purpose. "First I get called, then you, now both. I think they're doing it on purpose." Steve said out aloud, trying not to sound too rude.

After a moment of gazing at him, I smiled softly. "Next time I'm cooking, no more fancy restaurants." I chuckled.

"I'm really sorry..." Steve apologized again, but I shook my head.

"It's not your fault." As soon as I paid the receipt, Steve and I left the restaurant, getting in my car. I turned the key and the engine of the black Mustang roared under the hood. "Triskelion?" I asked him, setting the gear. He nodded as I took off my heels and threw them on the backseats. "Well, fuck." I muttered while getting out of the parking lot, bare foot pressing down on the gas pedal as soon as I hit the streets.

 

"There they are." Rumlow said as he saw Steve and I boarding the Quinjet. He noticed the makeup on my face and the curled hair, along with an annoyed expression. Steve had changed into his Captain America stealth suit, promptly putting on his helmet, while I had changed into my black uniform. Rumlow gave me a smirk, mocking me. "Why so grumpy, Agent Alkaeva?"

"Shut it, Rumlow." I said, sitting down in a seat.

Apart from the team commander, the whole STRIKE Team was there too. The Quinjet finally took off from the ground, leading us to the mission's location. "Alright, listen up." Rumlow spoke. "We've got a heavily armed gang with many hostages." He informed us, handing me an iPad with all the info of the operation, then I passed it to Steve after a quick reading. "Governor and Wife are among the event's guests, so their safety is a high priority."

Steve narrowed his eyes at Rumlow's words, clenching his jaw. "Each innocent person in that building is high priority." The look that the two exchanged was almost murderous.

"Okay, we're following the usual scheme then." I got in between them, taking back the iPad gently from Steve's hands, trying to sooth the tension. Those two didn't like each other at all. "I'll take the Governor and his Wife, you two do what you usually do." I looked at the Governor's picture and fixed his face in my head, along with the picture of his Wife.

"STRIKE Team will follow after the Captain, we'll get out the rest of the hostages." Rumlow told his team, then exchanged a silent nod with Steve.

As soon as Rumlow had moved away from us, I looked up at Steve's blue irises and smiled softly, whispering. "Don't take it personally, he doesn't like anyone but himself." I gave him a reassuring squeeze with my right hand on his upper left arm.

"Two enemies on the roof, the rest is patrolling inside the building." Rumlow informed us before we reached the destination. "The Governor is held captive in a separate location." He showed me some footage from the hacked security camera. 

I nodded with determination. "Great, let's go then."

As soon as the Quinjet was above the building, an agent opened the back-ramp, Steve and I jumping onto the flat surface. He charged against one guard while I swiftly took down the other, before they could warn the rest of their gang. "Go find the Governor, I'll draw their attention." Steve told me as he had opened the door to the stairs that led to the floor below us.

"Aye, Captain." When we descended the stairs, we parted ways heading in opposite directions. Through the comm in my ear, Rumlow said that the STRIKE Team would wait until I had the Governor and his Wife secured. As soon as I got to a floor where multiple guards where, I whistled to draw their attention. "Hey, d'you know where's yo momma? Cause you'll be running like crybabies to her."

Their pointed their gun at me, but I hid behind a corner, escaping their bullets. _"Kitsune, what's happening there?"_ Rumlow spoke in my earpiece. _"I thought you'd do it quietly."_

"Just shut up and let me do my job!" I growled lowly. The gunshots stopped and I heard one of the men tell someone to check if I had been hit. When the man hit the corner where I was, I grabbed his hand and flipped him on his back while disarming him. I pointed that same gun in the other's direction and opened fire, taking down three of them. The magazine clicked empty, so I threw away the weapon, giving a hard kick to the guy on the ground, knocking him unconscious. I charged at two other men and and gave them a harsh beating, then opened the door to the room, un unexpected gunshot hitting me in the chest, my body falling down onto the ground. I was breathing heavily, blood flowing out of my wound and my coughing mouth.

"Surprise, bitch." Snorted the man who shot me, pointing his gun at my face from where he stood. I could hear the Governor trying to shush his crying Wife, hoping she wouldn't receive the same treatment.

I felt a metallic taste in my mouth, and it wasn't just the blood. Turning my head to the side, I spit out the bullet shell, then looked up at the men. "Think that would've killed me?" I asked him, sarcasm laced in my voice. My legs laced around his in an instant, bringing him down to the floor as I snatched the gun from his hands and hit him with the handle in the head. One blow was enough to knock him unconscious. The gash on my chest closed quickly, blood stopping its flow, so I stood up from the ground and looked at the two hostages in the room. "I've got them." I said trying to regain my breath after I've clicked a button on my earpiece, then spat out some blood on the floor.

 _"Good job. Keep them safe while we clear the rest of the floor."_ Answered Rumlow.

"Copy that." I replied, walking inside of the room to look at the Governor and his Wife. "Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan." I greeted the two frightened people.

"Please, don't hurt us!" The man pleaded, making me furrow my brow.

"I've come to rescue you!" I said exasperated. "Now, please be patient, you'll get out of here pretty soon."

"Who are you?" Asked the woman while drying her puffy eyes, smeared makeup on her cheeks.

"Operative Agent of SHIELD, you're welcome." I opened my arms dramatically. I didn't act like usually in front of civilians, but since my night has been ruined by yet another mission, I couldn't help but release my anger with some sarcasm.

The woman reached for a handkerchief in her pockets, then handed it to me. "Thank you." I accepted the kind gesture and used it to clean the blood from my face. "You can keep it, by the way."

"Kitsune." Steve said. I turned around and saw him at the end of the corridor, making his way to me, eyes glancing at the enemies sprawled on the floor, then he noticed the amount of blood on my clothes. "Are you alright?" He asked me concerned.

I nodded, a bit of shame in my expression. "I haven't been careful enough. Didn't know one of the bastards was hiding behind the door."

"Captain America!" The woman beamed suddenly, her face lighting up in a joyful smile.

"Ma'am, Governor." Steve greeted the two, masked head nodding their way. As soon as we received news from the STRIKE Team, Steve and I escorted the Governor and his Wife in the hands of the authorities, the woman taking advantage of the situation, she clung to Captain America as if she were about to die. 

Back on the Quinjet, Rumlow sat beside me with a grin on his face. "So, are you up for a drink? It's been a while since we had one." Steve winced unnoticeably at the sound of Rumlow's words.

I narrowed my eyes at him, then shook my head. "Gotta pass, I have a date to go back to."

"Oh, I see," Rumlow chuckled, "is he at least a handsome guy?" I knew right away that he was trying to provoke Steve, since he had caught on that the blonde and I had been together before the call about the mission.

"Very handsome. And he's a gentleman," I looked him straight in the eyes, "unlike you." Steve's lips twitched up in a small smile when he heard that, mentally giving himself a point, while Rumlow had zero. It wasn't a competition, he reminded himself, but he still liked the fact that I was giving him a chance to court me, despite all of our dates ending up in failures mid way through the ordination.

Back at the HQ, I changed into my previous outfit, washing the stains of blood in the bathroom, then threw my combat suit into the trash can. I mentally cursed myself for being so careless. Just because I could heal from any injury, I didn't mean I should lower my guard down. I met with Steve in the main hall after a couple of minutes, heading for the parking lot with him. "So, are still you up for that dinner?"

Steve stopped in his tracks, giving me an apologetic look. "Maybe another time? You should go home and rest."

Despite the slight feeling of rejection, I smiled softly, nodding my curly head at him. "Okay, I'll drive you home then." I gave him a light peck on the cheek, him getting flustered all of a sudden. We've never kissed before, and I knew he wanted to take slow steps, take me out for a dinner and at the end of the night, he'd make a move, in a fancy old-fashioned way. But that seemed to fail him all the time, he'd have to think of something else.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Viktoria is having a hard time with her feelings.
> 
> At the end I inserted the lyrics of a [FOB's song](https://youtu.be/LkIWmsP3c_s), because I absolutely love it and I guess Viks would like the band too lol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I hope you like this chapter, though I'm not really sure how I feel about it yet. It gives me kind of a slow vibe almost.
> 
> For new readers, you can read the each part of this Series as standalone, but the story is connected. Sometimes I make references about something that happened in the previous parts, and I'll link them here so you can check out the specific chapter.
> 
> Viktoria's dream: [Chapter 8: I've Got Your Back](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5382290/chapters/14448394)  
> GIfs: [1, 2 and 3](http://www.fanforum.com/f350/alex-lyndsy-fonseca-8-~-%E2%80%9Ci-am-worst-cook-i-make-mess-making-bowl-cereal%E2%80%A6like-i%E2%80%99m-just-such-klutz-lyndsy-63074523/index14.html#post66732110) \- [4 (Nat)](http://gifhunterress.tumblr.com/post/53997042767/black-widow-natasha-romanoff-scarlett-johansson) \- [5](http://howlincommndos.tumblr.com/post/122532610319) \- [6(Sam)](http://rebloggy.com/post/mine-my-edit-5k-10k-captain-america-steve-rogers-falcon-captain-america-the-win/81999040039)

"What do you mean Shield is cockblocking you?" Natasha giggles from her spot, where she sat on a mat doing some stretches before workout.

I gave a few angry punches against the punching-bag and pulled back, sighing heavily. "I mean that every damn time I'm out with Steve, one or both of us get called on duty."

"Seriously?" Nat stopped midway while stretching and looked up at my angry face. "Now that's suspicious..." She murmured, resuming her stretching. I furrowed my brow, focusing all of my bottled up emotions on the inanimate object in front of me and started throwing punches once again. "Careful, you're going to blow a hole in it." Natasha told me, standing up from the ground and turned to look at me.

"I'm not even using my full strength." I breathed out looking at the redhead, noticing that the strands had became a bit longer. "What did you do to your hair?" I asked her.

"Don't change topic." She pointed one finger at me. "I know where you could use all that energy instead of killing the poor sandbag." Nat smirked at me, positioning herself at the center of the mat, where I followed her.

I thought about her words, a slight intuition but didn't dare to make assumptions. "Enlighten me, please." I threw a punch towards her face, but she dodged it swiftly whilst grabbing my wrist, ready to counterattack, but with my left hand I stopped the fist headed to my chin by closing the fingers around it.

"Steve." Nat whispered, making me tilt my head. She saw an opportunity and kicked me off of my feet down onto the mat.

"What about Steve?" I groaned in slight pain, Nat offering her hand to pull me up, and I accepted.

"You know..." She charged at me with one leg and I quickly crouched on my knees, somersaulting on the mat and stood up behind her, snaking my arm around her throat in a death lock. Nat struggled to speak, fingers trying to drag away my forearm from her throat. "You could show him the wonders of coupling..." The redhead stomped her foot on top of mine and, as soon as she felt my grip around her loosen, she slipped out of my grasp and shoved me away.

I straightened my back, moving my sweating hair out of my face. "D'you think he's never done it before?" I asked her bewildered.

Nat shrugged, a devious smirk on her plump lips. "A hundred percent." When she saw my puzzled expression, she relaxed her fighting stance and looked at me. "Didn't you notice the innocent way that he looks at you?"

"I thought he just wanted to take it slow, 'cause..." I said in my defense, but trailed off realizing how oblivious I've been.

"Viks, he hasn't even kissed you yet." The redhead pointed out and I gasped.

"How'd you know that?" I exclaimed, feeling a bit sad.

At first, Nat was quite reluctant to reply but then gave in and said it. "Steve told me. He's frustrated because he likes you, yet he wasn't able to make a move yet."

I thought about it for a moment, until we heard other people enter the gym, agents chatting joyfully. I started unrolling the black tape from around my hands and glanced at my best friend. "It's the 21 century, bet you a woman can make the so called move on a man."

"Attagirl! I'll cheer for you." Natasha grabbed her bag that was by the mat and waved off, leaving the gym.

I took a quick shower in the bathroom of the locker-room and changed into some fresh clothes. It was quite late in the afternoon, so I decided to tie up my damp hair up in a tight twisted bun and headed out of Shield's HQ, boots making light sounds against the ground in the underground parking lot. I felt a strange kind of vibe, no one was around, but I couldn't shake off the feeling of being watched. I got the keys of the my car and unlocked the door, sitting behind the wheel, making sure to close the door with a loud swing. I sighed, glancing at the rearview mirror, but no one was there. "Director, do you mind explaining why you're in my car?"

"Just start driving." A muffled voice of Fury replied, as if he had been covered with something.

I turned the engine to life and drove out of the parking lot, waiting in silence till I passed at the security check point, waving at the agent that was guarding the entrance. A few block later, as I drove towards home, Fury finally uncovered himself from what looked like to be the Cape of Invisibility from Harry Potter. "Is that some type of new technology or a gift from Thor?" I joked, glancing at the rearview mirror as I drove. The Director gave me a stinky eye, expression too tired to cope with my sarcasm. "Now, would you please tell me why were you hiding in my car?" I slowed down at a red light, impatiently tapping with my fingers on the steering-wheel.

"I wanna know why your level of Clearance got up to 9." The man deadpanned, making me narrow my eyes slightly, pressing down my feet on the gas pedal as the light turned green.

If I weren't careful with my choice of words, I'd get myself in a lot of trouble. "Because Mr. Pierce decided it." I replied shortly, no strange notes in my voice since it was the truth.

"Do you know how much access you have with that kind of Clearance?" Fury asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I do." I replied, taking a turn close to my apartment. "Let me tell you something, Director. Mr. Pierce called me in and told me that I'd work under his orders when he requires it, and he promoted my level in case I ever need to consult classified files regarding certain operations." Fury seemed to believe it, but I knew he didn't buy it completely, neither I would. "If you're worried about me stumbling upon some of your darkest secrets, don't worry, it won't happen. At least, it's not like I'm gonna start running in the streets telling your business to the world." I slowed down the car until I was inside the parking lot of my condo, then parked the Mustang in its usual spot, looking at Fury once again from the rearview mirror. He just sat there behind me in silence, expressionless face. "Say something, you're creepy."

Director Fury shrugged nonchalantly. "I know you're smart, Agent Alkaeva." He stated. "I just wanted to make sure you didn't take a step further than your leg." He opened the door and got out of the car. I noticed a black car rounding the parking lot, until it stopped behind me and Fury got in, a Shield symbol painted on the other vehicle.

That was close, I thought, but I'd have to be more careful, I know the computer monitors which files I opened. I got out of my car and locked it before heading up to my apartment. As soon as I pushed the door open, I turned on the lights in the living room, throwing the keys on a nearby cupboard. I was too tired to prepare some dinner, so I just pulled at the elastic that kept in place my damp hair and laid down on my bed in the bedroom, my phone in one hand. I was feeling a bit lonely, so I looked through the saved recordings and tapped on a specific file to play it out aloud.

 _"You reached the voice mail of Agent Coulson."_ I smiled sadly at his voice, burying my face in the pillow. _"Leave a message after the same old usual beep."_

A silent while after the recording had stopped playing, I looked up at the ceiling, sighing softly. "I miss you..."

 

_I was running through the forest. The tracks on the damp soil were faint, but I had picked up his trail. "Zimniy Soldat." I whispered, slowing down my pace as soon as I reached a small level ground above a grave led path. My eyes widened at the sight if the Winter Soldier fighting Steve. They were both throwing hard punches, struggling to gain the upper hand on the opponent. "Stop fighting!" I yelled, but they ignored me. "Steve!" I gasped as the Winter Soldier tackled down Steve, crouching on his with a butterfly knife in his right hand, awfully close to the blonde's throat. "No-" Suddenly, something behind me pushed me down, my body rolling harshly against the soil and between the rocks, until I was by Steve's side. I felt weak, my arms barely managing to lift me off the graveled surface, eyes looking at the person standing in front of me. She was dressed in a white suit, leather and fur wrapped around her body, a mask shielding her face. I didn't need for her to take off that fox-shaped face guard, I knew that she was me, and I was her._

_"Ty slabaya." The other me said after she had removed her face guard, dangerous eyes looking down at me, cold expression._

_I glanced at Steve a few feet away from me, the Winter Soldier waiting for an order, the Arctic Fox giving him a single nod to proceed. "Net, stop!" I reached out my hand for him, but the other me unsheathed her katana, striking it down on me._

I shot my eyes open, sitting up on my bed whilst breathing heavily, a cold sweat running down my forehead with my clothes drenched in it. I've never felt this terrified in my whole life, whatever this dream meant, it was nothing good at all. _"You're weak."_ The Arctic Fox's words replayed in a loop in my mind. I wasn't that person anymore, it was obvious, but her lingering presence in the back of my mind made chills run down my spine. I wouldn't let that happen to Steve, and the Winter Soldier had to wait a little bit longer for me.

I glanced outside of the window, early morning light starting to break through the sky. There was no point in going to sleep again, I wouldn't have been able to fall back to slumber after that nightmare. I got out of bed and threw on some training clothes, black tank-top and leggings, a pair of grey trainers and grabbed my phone, plugging in some headphones and headed out for a run. I ran for a while, music playing loud in my headphones as I took a couple of rounds at the Reflecting Pool, eventually coming to stop and I sat on the steps in front of the Lincoln Memorial. There was no one around, the clock on my phone showed six in the morning. I couldn't help but think about the dream, everything felt so out of place and I was confused. Which way was I going? Nothing made sense and I felt as if I had lost control on my life, somehow.

 _"Hey!"_ I looked at a video of my 22nd birthday, a few months before the Battle of New York. Clint was holding my phone and recording me. I was sitting at the table, palms of my hands covering my eyes as Coulson put down a cake in front of me, Natasha telling me to open my eyes. I moved away my hands and smiled wide at the sight of the delicious cake. _"Happy birthday to you," _the three of them sung, making me giggle in happiness, _"happy birthday, dear Viktoria, happy birthday to you! Make a wish!"_ Coulson exclaimed, so I thought about something then leaned forwards and blew out the twenty-two candles, hands clapping after. I paused the video, looking at Coulson hugging me from where he was standing next to me, a happy smile on my face.__

____

"Hey, are you alright?" A male voice asked, startling me. I looked up at the guy and gazed at him confused. His eyes and skin where dark brown, hair cut short and he was tall, dressed in training clothes, sweat running down his face. "You're crying." He pointed out. 

I reached for my cheek and touched something wet, drying it quickly with my fingers. I smiled at the stranger, nodding. "Yeah, just been looking at a video." I shrugged, showing him my phone. 

He nodded slowly, taking deep breaths as he had just stopped running. "Sad memories?" He asked me, sitting next to me. This guys was really outgoing, but not in an invasive way. 

"Quite the opposite." I replied whilst taking out my headphones from my ears. "I..." My voice caught in my throat, but forced it out. "I lost someone a while ago, but it still makes me feel sad." 

"I know how it feels." The guy said. "It's okay to cry when you feel the need to. It doesn't make you weak," I looked at him, carefully listening to his words, "it shows that you can feel emotions and you're still alive." His words somehow made me feel better. "And the person you lost can live through you." 

I smiled softly, looking down at the paused video. "Yeah, you're right." I glanced at him once more, offering my hand for him to shake. "I'm Viktoria." 

"Sam." He replied, shaking my hand, then after a moment stood up from the step. "I'm glad you're feeling better. I'll see you around if you come for a run." 

"Sure thing. Thank you, Sam." The guy nodded as he waved, resuming his morning run. I felt my confidence boosting up, energy flowing through my veins. I put back the headphones in my ears and played another song. 

___I'm in the de-details with the devil_  
_So now the world can never get me on my level_  
_I just got to get you out of the cage_  
_I'm a young lover's rage_  
_Gonna need a spark to ignite_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, leave kudos and comments if you liked it! I love reading your feedback (:
> 
>  
> 
> I was editing and the html just kept messing it up, if you see something strange, like missing parts or something doesn't make sense, please tell me so I can fix it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's a big Star Wars fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [first gif](http://antiapathy1980.tumblr.com/post/116925376890/gamergirloracle-i-need-a-au-fic-of-former), [second gif](https://marvelhub.wordpress.com/2015/08/22/first-deleted-scene-from-avengers-age-of-ultron-in-gif-form/), [last gif](https://giphy.com/gifs/alex-nikita-cw-k5VXJQBRNXlsc)

Steady breathing and firm grip on the weapon, finger hovering by the trigger. The target was just in the line of the rifle sight. "Target acquired." I spoke through my comm, concentrated on the single shot.

_"Stand by for further instructions."_ Came the reply, Mr. Pierce was on the phone with my target. It was the same as usual, he'd send me on a mission, if the other person didn't accept to cooperate, I'd bring him or her down.

In the meantime, I counted the bodyguards, some standing in position while others patrolled around the perimeter. I was hiding in a tall building, last floor, the point of the rifle turned towards a yacht, where we target was, a few miles from the coast. This was taking longer than I thought. My phone buzzed in my pocket, distracting me for a moment, until it stopped vibrating in my pocket. I couldn't answer since I was pretty busy keeping an eye on the target. The phone started vibrating once again, and I sighed in defeat, looking away from the rifle sight to pick up my phone. "Oh, not now..." I whispered, putting the transmission of the earpiece on mute so I could answer the call. "Steve, hi." I faked a cheerful voice. Sure, I was happy he called, but I had to think about the target first.

_"Hey, hope I'm not interrupting something."_ He said, making me furrow my brow.

"Not at all. What's up?" I looked at the target. The man had moved from the deck to the inside of the yacht. I almost groaned in annoyance.

_"Well, I was wondering if you were up for a drink."_ He asked me hopeful, and I bit my lower lip in frustration, drawing some blood but the wound quickly healed.

I could see small parts of the target's body from a window, but it wasn't enough to predict which way he'd go. If the man wasn't to come out before the order to take him down, I'd have to change the type of bullet, which was a complete nuisance. "I'd love to, but I'm out of DC right now..." I replied with a sad tone. "What about-"

_"Take the target down."_ Pierce ordered through the earpiece, making me groan.

"Hold just a second, Steve. Don't hang up." I said in a rush, putting the phone on mute and unmuted the transmission. "Copy that. Wait for confirmation." I glanced once again from the rifle sight and saw that the target hadn't come out in the open of the yacht. I put the phone on the floor and changed the type of bullet from the weapon, inserting armor-piercing shells. I looked once again from the rifle sight and searched for the man, noticing his steady shadow inside the yacht. Taking a deep breath while also calculating his head's position, I released my breath and pulled the trigged, a single bullet shooting out. A few more seconds passed and I glanced around the yacht, guards rushing towards their boss. "Target is down." I informed Pierce, and he told me to pack my things and leave. "Copy that." I turned off the comm and picked up my phone, unmuting the call. "You still there?" I asked concerned.

_"Yes..."_ Steve replied quite taken aback. _"Are you sure I'm not interrupting anything?"_ He asked me again.

"No, sorry, it was the room service." I lied without effort. "So, about what I was gonna say..." I thought about it, trying to remember my words before I got interrupted. "I'm coming back in a few days, so... I was thinking about a nice dinner at my place. Just you and I, no phones." I was really hoping he'd say yes. I glanced at the time on the screen, seconds ticking and I had to get out of there.

Steve chuckled on the other side of the line. _"Sure, give me a call when you're back."_

 

Everything was in place... Except it wasn't. I had all those ingredients in front of me and I had no idea what to make, if only I had Coulson's cooking recipes diary. I didn't know where the hell it could've been; when I at his old apartment, I couldn't find it. I glanced at the stuff on the kitchen counter and tapped the tips of my fingers on the flat surface, pondering what to do. A quick glimpse at the time on my phone and anxiety seemed to take me over, but I tried to calm down whilst grabbing a sharp knife from a drawer under the counter and begun cutting the vegetables in small pieces, throwing them in a large pan with olive oil. "Dear God, this is why I don't invite people over..." I murmured, skillfully slicing through a chunk of meat, then laid it in the pan with the vegetables, throwing on top some seasoning. Another glimpse at the time on the phone and hurried to set the table while all the ingredients cooked together. "Candles?" I gasped. "I don't have any candles." With all the things that I've planned how could I forget something that important? "No, Viktoria. Candles are too cliché and make you feel uncomfortable." I deadpanned. Whilst trying to forget about those candles I almost forgot the pan on the stove. "Fuck, fuck, fuck..." I ran towards the stove, nervously looking around the counter for a fork or anything else to turn around the meat and stir the veggies, but there was nothing close. I raised my right hand above the pan and focused on the ingredients, lifting them up with my powers. "How the hell do professional chefs do this everyday?"

_Oh, no, the door,_ I thought as soon as I heard the doorbell ring down the hall, my mouth falling agape. The only thing that was ready was the table, but neither the meat nor I were ready. I glanced down at the way that I was dressed, a skintight black t-shirt and a pair of dark blue pajama shorts. Another ring at the door dragged me out of my self-pity, and I run bare feet to open the front door, mentally cursing myself for being unprepared. I unlocked the door and opened it, smiling as I saw Steve standing there in the hallway. "Hi." I breathed out. Suddenly, I felt too aware of the effect that he had of me, I could easily make a fool of myself.

"Hey." The blonde smiled sheepishly at the sight of my casual choice of clothing, nice long legs trying to distract him from my eyes. Moving his right arm from behind his back, he revealed a small bouquet of red roses. "Flower are still cool, right?" He broke the ice with his question, making me giggle with a nod.

"Always will." I said, accepting the gift. I moved aside to let him in and closed the door.

"Something's burning..." Steve said, my eyes widening in shock.

I sniffed the air, the scent of smoke filling my nose. "Oh, God, no!" I yelled, running towards the kitchen in an attempt to save our dinner from burning completely. I turned off the stove and grabbed the hot handle to move the pan on a colder surface.

"Don't burn yourself!" Warned me Steve, but at soon as I let go of the handle, he gently took my hand between his to inspect the palm, noticing that nothing had happened to the skin. "There's... Nothing." He uttered.

"I can't burn myself, Cap." I chuckled. "I manipulate fire, remember?" He was a bit taken aback, a slight crease between his brows. I reached up with that same hands and caressed his cheek softly. "You are so thoughtful... Yet I burned our dinner."

He glanced at the food in the pan and attempted to make me feel better. "I can still eat it."

I snorted, shaking my head. "No way you're eating that, I'm not letting you." I pulled away from him and left the bouquet that I was still holding on the counter, taking my phone instead. "Japanese, Chines, Indian, Thai, Italian?" I asked him, but he just shrugged. 

 

"Pizza." I said, biting into the delicious food. "It fixes everything. Even a date almost gone wrong." There was a lot of sarcasm in my voice. I was still feeling like an idiot for burning the food.

"Relax, it's not that big of a deal." Steve said from next to me at the table. I gave him a narrowed eye look and he chuckled after swallowing. "Alright, I'll give you that. It's the first time that we actually haven't been interrupted... Yet."

I laughed at his statement. "Don't be too negative, Steve. No one's gonna call us on duty tonight." He gave me a curious look, then took a sip from his bottle of beer.

"So, how's work been lately?" He asked me casually, and I just shrugged.

"Fighting bad guys, classified stuff, spying for the sake of the country, fighting more bad guys..." I drunk a bit of my red wine and twitched my lips afterwards from the after taste. "Again, classified stuff." I wasn't even being sarcastic, that was my true routine. "What about you?"

"Ahm, basically the same. Shield doesn't give us much of a fun time, does it?" He was being sarcastic. I shook my head in reply. "What?" He asked me after a moment of silence, smiles on both of our faces.

I leaned my left elbow elbow on the table and rested the chin on the palm of my hand. "I was thinking about the first time that you asked me out." Steve tilted his head in curiosity. "Took you quite a long time since I gave you my number." We chuckled, his blue irises fixed on my hazel ones. He didn't say anything, just gazed at me, and I couldn't help myself. I leaned towards his face and gave him a light kiss on the lips. He was startled at first, but quickly replied to the gesture, gently taking my face between the palms of his hands. We parted after a long moment, taking in our breaths. I could hear his heart beat fast and loud inside of his ribcage, all of my senses focusing on him as as I lost myself in that blue ocean of his irises.

"Your eyes are glowing." Steve spoke softly, a slight crease on his forehead.

It took me a while to understand his words, retracting my hands from his cheeks in confusion. "My eyes?" I stuttered, blinking a few times as he nodded. His hands were resting on the sides of my bare thighs, thumbs gently caressing the skin. "Like, glowing glowing? What color?" I wasn't sure if he was joking or not.

"Your hazel color, just..." He paused, tilting his head to the side with a smile on his face. "Shinier."

I lowered my head, shutting my eyes tightly as a tingling feeling stirred in my belly. I could feel that something was different, and that something was causing me a reaction that I've never had before. _"Calm your primal instincts, Viktoria." _I mentally ordered myself. "Sorry..." I shook my head while apologizing. "I don't know what's happening." My voice seemed to break towards the end.__

The smile on Steve's face faltered but his hands rubbed reassuringly my thighs. "Hey, look at me." He said, and I turned my head to the side in an attempt to refuse. "Viktoria..." The softness in his tone finally made me look at him, sorrowful expression on my features. "Everything's fine, you don't need to stress yourself if something is making you feel uncomfortable." The emotions in my belly seemed to cool down, the glow in my eyes slowly faded as a sigh escaped my lips. "Better?" He asked me, his fingers taking a loose strand of brown hair to tuck it behind my ear. I nodded, leaning my cheek against the warmth of his hand.

The support that he gave me was a nice feeling, as if all the bad things that haunted my darkest thoughts disappeared when his warm light shone in front of me. "Do you wanna lay down and watch a movie? You know, to cross out one thing from your _catch-up_ notebook?"

Steve was glad that I was feeling quite better. "Tell me you have the Star Wars movie and I'm down for it." I giggled at his statement, the blond arching one eyebrow at me. "Is it really that bad?" He asked with a reluctant look.

I shook my head, still giggling. "No, absolutely not, but you're gonna have to be more specific about which episode you want to see first, although I do recommend the first trilogy."

"How many episodes are there?" Steve asked me, leaning back in his seat with a sigh of defeat.

"Six, hopefully more in the future." I replied, crossing my arms in front of my chest. "Trust me, you'll like them."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm posting this chapter really late at night and I'm quite tired ( ~~I had a pretty long day~~ ). I'm sorry if there are some mistakes or just various errors in general (again, my grammar might not be perfect since I'm not a native English speaker).
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, I hope you like this new chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's a better way to start the day if not in the arms of a cinnamon roll? ...But things are starting to get a bit more complicated, as Bucky wakes up too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeello beauties, I present you fluff and angst in just one chapter! Just how evil can I be? We may not know yet.
> 
> If you were in Viktoria's shoes, would you keep calm and collected like her or would you start to freak out? I'd have a hard time keeping a straight face in front of difficulties.
> 
> Gif links: [one](https://giphy.com/gifs/nikita-tWn6HRFcBdhaE) \- [two](http://alessia1995.tumblr.com/post/97986541408)  
> I couldn't find the original link to the Chris Evans/Lyndsy Fonseca gif, but it pinpointed to Tumblr, so I'm guessing the owner is from there.

Everything was peaceful, a warm feeling all around my body. A soft groan made me blink my sleepy eyes open, fingers rubbing gently at my stiffened face which was resting on someone's chest, slow and steady breathing making his ribcage rise and fall. I moved my head and gazed at Steve's sleeping face, a smile tugging at the corners of my lips. I fell asleep on his shoulder last night while watching Star Wars, a New Hope, and he must've switched off the tv afterwards. Steve suddenly stirred, muscles twitching as he began waking up, his right arm around my back pulled me closer to him. 

I gave him a light peck on his chin to wake him up and saw his eyelashes batting a few times, until his eyes opened. "Good morning, Sunshine." I purred, leaning on my elbow so I could give him one more kiss, this time on the lips. Steve smiled, but soon his face changed into an expression of distress. "Hey, what's wrong?" My brow furrowed.

"Your leg-" he replied with a low morning tone.

I furrowed my brow and quickly glanced down at my right leg resting on top of his, knee pressing against his crotch. I slipped it further down and received a light whimper from him. My eyes widened at the sight of a bulge under the thin bedsheets, excitement pouring into my veins. "Oh, that's something nice to wake up to..." I purred in his ear with a sexy grin.

His face was flushed, redness in his cheeks. "I'm sorry." He averted my gaze, bringing his arm up co cover his face.

"Now, why are you apologizing?" I asked him, gently running the tips of my fingers on his chest. "It's something natural." I tried to comfort him, but the look he gave me was way too serious for my liking. I felt incredibly bold and straddled him under the bedsheets, Steve's upper body shooting up in shock as his hands reached for my hips. "Are you sure you don't want me to take care of it?" I asked him, snaking my arms around his broad shoulder, then run my fingers through his ruffled short hair. The previous tension seemed to leave place to a more relaxed expression, the bulge twitching against his jeans. 

He didn't say anything in reply, just pushed his hands further behind my back and pressed me against his body, lips crashing onto mine, but not roughly, he was still soft yet passionate. His fingers slipped under the hem of my tank top, slowly lifting it up. My hips bucked against his crotch, earning a small whimper from Steve. I moaned, grasping the hem of Steve's sweater and lifted it up over his head, parting our lips to remove his piece of clothing, then resumed kissing him. I run the palms of my hands on his toned chest, deepening the kiss as I granted access to his tongue to feel mine. Steve rolled us on the mattress, my back resting on the soft surface.

Steve leaned up on his forearms, blue irises gazing into hazel ones. "Are you sure you want to do this?" His voice was low, uncertainty in his words.

I nodded, caressing his cheeks. "Are you?" I asked him too. I was happy, knowing that he'd have his first time with me, but I wanted to make sure he was okay with it. He nodded too, smiling at me, the worry on his features gone. Steve leaned down and kissed my lips, slowly parting them with his tongue. He pushed my legs further apart with his hips, tentatively rubbing himself on my lower regions. I moaned at the nice feeling, a warm sensation in my lower belly making me arch my back.

We stopped kissing abruptly when the bell to my front door rang. I furrowed my brow, looking up towards the door to the living room. "Were you expecting someone?" Steve whispered, as if the person who was waiting outside of my apartment could hear him.

"Hell, no." I replied, annoyance building up in my expression as the bell rang again more insistent. "Goddammit." I cursed under my breath, Steve moving to let me get out of bed. I tapped lightly with my feet through the rooms, reaching the door. I didn't even look through the peephole, just unlocked and swung the door open. "Rumlow, why are you here?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"You weren't answering your phone." The man deadpanned, crossing his arms over his chest. I noticed him wearing his usual black uniform, only there wasn't written STRIKE Team on the vest. "Go put your clothes on, we've got a mission." He informed me, expecting me to let him in my apartment.

"Viktoria?" Steve's voice came from behind me. I looked at him, seeing that he had put back on his sweater, brow furrowed at what was happening. "Rumlow." He greeted the other man.

"Captain Rogers." Rumlow's expressionless face turned into one of realization as he watched carefully at the blonde, then at me. He knew he must've interrupted something important since I wasn't answering my phone. "Sorry, man, but I have to borrow your girlfriend for a while."

"Alright." I said in defeat. "Wait outside." I told Rumlow and he nodded, leaving. I closed the door, a heavy sigh coming out of my mouth. "So much for spending quality time with you..." I murmured sadly.

"It's okay." Steve pulled me in for a hug, kissing my forehead. "Work is work." He said in comprehension, but it really bothered me that Shield could interfere into my personal space whenever they pleased.

"Gimme a minute, I'll dress up quickly." I said, heading for my bedroom. I didn't bother closing the bedroom door as he waited, instead took off my clothes and put on a pair of tight black pants and a white blouse with a red leather jacket on top, lacing up my combat boots in a hurry before brushing my teeth in the bathroom. "Alright, let's go." I said while grabbing my phone and keys, heading out of my apartment with Steve. "Hopefully it's not going to take long, but you never now." I saw Rumlow's car parked outside of the condo, waiting for me.

"Don't worry, they have you." Steve said with a smile, leaning down to peck my lips, then left.

I got in Rumlow's car and buckled up, looking at him. "What is this all about?" He was too secretive, and it made me suspicious.

"We gotta retrieve a package." He said without further information.

"Why would Shield send _us_ to retrieve a package?" I insisted as he turned the key to start the engine.

He looked at me, a small grin on his face. "Not Shield, Alkaeva." Realization hit me, my behavior changing completely towards him. I could've been surprised to find out that he was a Hydra agent too, but for some reason it didn't bother me at all.

I leaned against the backrest, tilting my head to the side. "Don't mess with me, Rumlow." My voice lowered dangerously. "If I ask you a question, you answer."

He shrugged. "Pierce said you already knew about it." 

I thought about his words for a moment. "Go. I don't want to waste any more time." To say that I was mad for the interruption would've been a good description of my feelings, but now that the Winter Soldier was on the line made me feel extremely nervous. So many years have passed since I last saw him, and I couldn't wait to see him again.

 

My intuitions were right, there stood the cryo-chamber before my eyes. We went to the airport, and from there Rumlow and I drove a truck with the 'package' to a hideout, where the rest of the STRIKE Team unloaded it. The lights in the large room were shining brightly, Hydra agents making preparations to wake up the Winter Soldier. One agents informed me that Mr. Pierce had arrived, and I went to greet him, surely not out of respect.

"Sir." I nodded with a serious expression as he got out of his car, the elder man buttoning his formal jacket before he smiled at me as if we were some kind of friends.

"Viktoria." He said, following me inside of the secluded hideout. "Is he awake yet?"

"Almost." I replied, whilst entering the room where the cryo-chamber had been placed. I looked at the metallic rectangle, one small window to display Bucky's face. His features looked peaceful, as he was dreaming of happier things. "Why did you transfer him in DC?" I asked Pierce, averting my eyes from the _freezer_ to look at the man.

"Things have taken an unexpected turn." He said, eyes fixed on the sleeping soldier. "I came to know that someone's been tracking your movements from time to time."

I furrowed my brow, crossing my arms over my chest. "Fury's orders?" He nodded. "For how long?" I thought for a moment, unable to remember if I ever felt as if someone had been following me while I was working off-grid.

"A few months now." He replied, turning his eyes to me. "Don't worry. The agent that's been following you informed me as soon as he received the order." He explained, a smug grin on his face. "He's been taking pictures of you at cafes and shops to show that you actually went on vacations instead of doing something suspicious." I sighed in relief, even though deep down my nerves were a wreck.

"Are you sure he didn't send more agents to follow me?" I asked. If someone followed me on my secret missions, that could also mean they followed me during my daily life here, documenting with whom I spoke and spent time with. I'd have to be more careful.

Pierce shook his head. "I made sure of it."

The doctors informed us before they deactivated the Cryofreeze and we stepped a bit closer to watch as the inside of the chamber became warmer, the pale color of the soldier's skin becoming pinkish. Bucky's heavy eyelids batted open very slowly, looking at the figures staring back at him through the glass. The doctors opened the door to the chamber, a warm gust of wind coming out of it along with the soldier. The two doctors quickly placed his arms above their shoulders to support him, as a large part of his body was still numb. My heart started beating faster at the sight of my first love, but I kept a cool exterior whilst taking in a deep breath. I looked at his naked body, only a piece of underwear covering his delicate parts. His hair was still long, a bit of a stubble beard covering his jaw. The doctors placed him on a metal chair, quickly preparing to run some tests on his physical conditions.

"He's a friend of yours," said Pierce while leaning a bit towards me, "I'll let you do the honors."

I nodded at his words, then slowly stepped closer to Bucky to not startle him, speaking in Russian. "Good morning, Soldier." He looked up at me, blue irises shrinking as his pupils dilated. "How are you feeling?"

He squinted his eyes, trying to remember who I was, but I didn't have high hopes he would. He replied in Russian with a dry voice. "Tired. Hungry." He tilted his head, hair slipping on his face. "Confused."

"It's pretty normal." I said reassuringly, the kindness in my tone making him feel more relaxed. I took his chin between my fingers to inspect his face and see if anything had happened to it during the years. "You have just woken up from a long sleep." I pushed away the loose hair with my other hand, moving his head without forcing him. Surprisingly, he didn't react in a bad way at the contact like he used to years ago, but maybe he changed. Or so I thought. As soon a one of the doctors touched his right arm, he reacted abruptly by grabbing the doctor's neck and snatching from his hand a long syringe, ready to stab the frightened person without second thought. I quickly took a hold of his metal arm, stopping him, then spoke calmly. "Zimniy Soldat, let go of the doctor." I ordered him. It took him a couple of seconds to let go of the poor man's throat. Slowly turning his eyes to me, he gave me an apologetic look, then lowered his head as soon as I released his metal arm, in which he was holding the syringe. Silently, he handed it to me. "No one is going to hurt you, okay?" As much as I wanted to believe my own words, I couldn't help but think of it as a lie. On the other hand, I was grateful that his subconscious self still followed my orders. I gave back the syringe to the doctor and gave him a menacing look. "Be careful, he's not a toy."

"My, my..." Pierce's voice drew my attention to him. He had a satisfied look on his wrinkled face. "So this is the kind of control you have over him." He said.

I shrugged even though his words gave me some chills. "We've known each other for quite some time." I replied nonchalant in English. "I'm imprinted in his memory as an authority figure." I glanced at Bucky. He was listening to us, but refused to look up. If Steve only knew his best friend was alive... My heart was aching, but there was no cure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I hope you like the new chapter and leave some feedback and kudos <3 Thank you for reading


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ...Smut. 
> 
> You can probably tell how much thought I've put into it. I'm still embarrassed to let others read that kind of intimate stuff, so please take in consideration how I've tried to avoid some explicit words while writing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay fifth chapter! I hope you like it and I'm sorry all the chapters are kinda short, I'm even using a word counter to keep track of the chapters' average length so I can try and write them a bit more longer.
> 
> Anyway, I don't know when I'll be able to update cause I've got a few exams coming up and I've gotta study a shitload of stuff. Pray with me so I can make it through the next two weeks *insert hands/praying emoji*
> 
> I hope you like this chapter and leave some comments and kudos if you enjoyed it. Thank you for your time ♡

Three, eight, eleven, seventeen. He didn't miss one shot, there was a hole in each bullseye, maximum concentration and precision in his actions. I was watching the Winter Soldier while he trained, but he didn't need it at all. He was perfect. He was deadly. Then why did he let Natasha live when he had encountered her? That scar on her belly... I couldn't work out an explanation.

"Enough." I said in Russian, him stopping immediately and put the safety back on the weapon. "You've done well." He nodded, no words. My arms were crossed over my chest, expression showing that I was deep in thought.

"Is there something bothering you?" He asked me in Russian after a long wait in silence. It was strange that was asking, but I didn't let it get to my head.

"Do you know me?" I suddenly said, looking him straight in the eyes. It took him off guard, thinking that maybe he shouldn't have spoken without my permission. "I mean, do you remember me?" I asked a bit softer this time when I saw his head lowering, a slight crease between my eyebrows.

He was dumbfounded, unsure of what to say. That question should've been easy to answer, but he didn't know what to say. "Net..." He murmured.

My heart sunk a little at his no. After all that manipulation on his brain, how could he remember you, Viktoria? "I won't let them do this to you anymore." I whispered, but he just couldn't understand why I was acting so different when we were alone.

He tried to remember, he tried really hard. Why couldn't he remember? It was bugging him. "What's your name?" He asked me, stepping closer to me to hand me the gun.

I took the weapon, holding it tightly between my fingers, feeling the warmness he left on the material of the handle. "Viktoria." I replied, lifting up my eyes to his.

"I'll remember it." Bucky said with determination in his blue irises.

"Thank you." I nodded. "Go." I tilted my head to the door with a small smile. "You should rest."

I left the hideout and got in my car, heading home. It had been a few day since Bucky had woken up, and I had yet to see Steve. I've been avoiding his calls and texts, trying to clear my mind for what was coming next, even if I didn't know what that was. Another call from Steve and I pulled over, sighing in defeat before answering. "Steve, hey, sorry I haven't been answering your calls lately." I spoke with a low and tired voice.

 _"Is everything okay?"_ He asked me. I could tell he was worried. _"Were you away on a mission?"_

"As usual... I'm just a bit tired." I sighed once more. "I know it's late, but can I come over? I've just gotten back, so..." I really needed to see him, try and understand how I was really feeling about him.

 _"Sure, I got some beers."_ He chuckled on the other side of the line, making me smile.

"Great. See you later." I hung up and started driving again towards his place. When I arrived, I parked my car outside and headed in, climbing the stairs until I was in front of a door with a number four on the brown wood. I was about to know, when I heard someone behind me get out of their apartment. I glanced back in curiosity and saw a familiar blonde head. The woman looked at me and I looked at her in all seriousness. "Hi." I said, trying not to sound hesitant.

"Hey." Greeted back Sharon Carter. "You're here to see Steve?" She asked me, smiling faintly.

"And you're here to watch over him." I couldn't stop myself from throwing a rude remark, the woman's expression changing quickly. "I guess he doesn't know."

"He doesn't need to know." She spat back, raising her eyebrows at me while burying daggers in my skull.

The door to Steve's apartment suddenly opened, a happy smile on his sculpted features. "Hey, I heard you talking." He said, looking over at Sharon, then greeted her. "Neighbor."

"Neighbor." She said, giving a nod before leaving in an apparent hurry.

"Lovely, your neighbor." I said while entering his apartment and he closed the door, quite meaning the opposite. He could sense my biting humor.

"Don't pay too much attention to it." He leaned in to give me a peck on the forehead. "I've tried being nice, but she seems to avoid me like the plague." He joked, making me laugh softly.

I snaked my arms around his waist, lacing my fingers behind his back to pull him closer to me. I grinned at him and stood up on my tiptoes. "She has no idea how kind and captivating you are..." I tilted my head whilst biting my lower lips, and he raised one brow in suspicion. "Well, on the other hand it actually makes me happy, because I've got you all for me."

"Now, do you?" I nodded at his playful question and he cupped my cheeks between the palms of his hands, pulling me in for a kiss. I wanted more, and I wanted to have it now. I tugged at Steve's shirt, him getting the hint and scooped me up in his arms, supporting me with minimum effort as he took me to his bedroom, laying me gently down on the bed. "I think this is where we left off last time..." He murmured, laying on top of me as he pushed my thighs further apart with his hands.

"I don't care if the world is about to be invaded by aliens or the sun falls from the sky, I just want to be with you." I murmured, brushing my fingers through Steve's blonde locks. Biting my lip, I smiled softly at his furrowed expression. "What's bugging you?"

He blinked his eyelashes, shaking his head, then relaxed. "I was just thinking..." He whispered, then leaned down to kiss me, lips slowly brushing against each other. He bucked his crotch against mine, drawing a shaky moan from my mouth. We parted to catch our breaths and remove each other's clothes, goosebumps running on my skin as soon as his body pressed flush on top of mine. I could tell that he was nervous, inexperienced hands roamed my body with the subtle fear that he could hurt me with his strength, but I let him know that whatever he was doing, it was giving me pleasure. I slipped my hand in his boxers, gently caressing his already hard member, making him groan in pleasure. Whatever was in that Super Soldier Serum, it had had the same effect on his lower regions, I thought.

Steve felt bold, running his tongue down my jaw and neck until his lips reached the hem of my panties, blue irises looking up at my flushed face. His fingers slowly removed the thin underwear, revealing the wetness that had pooled out at my entrance. Propping myself up on my elbows, I unclasped my bra, discarding it on the floor with the rest of our things, hungry hazel eyes fixed on the blonde kissing the inside of my thighs. As soon as his tongue touched my sex, I moaned a bit louder, throwing my head back with my eyes shut. Steve's hands were holding my hips tightly, keeping my body in place from squirming too much under his ministrations.

"You like that?" He asked under his breath, eyes glancing up at my smiling face.

My breathing was erratic so I nodded in reply, his tongue flicked again my clit, waves of pleasure spreading into my body. "Oh-" I gasped arching my back. I looked at him, reaching for his face with my hands. "Come here..." I breathed out, and he crawled on top of me to kiss me. I could taste myself on his wet lips, but soon pushed him to lie down on his back and he removed his boxers impatiently. I took him in my hands and caressed him softly, lowering my head while keeping eye contact with him, then smirked playfully. "You lay back and enjoy."

"I'm sure I will-" He replied before gasping as I took him into my mouth.

I released him with a loud popping sound and feigned I didn't hear what he had said. "You were saying?" He gave me a smug look, chuckling while shaking his head. He reached with his hands to keep my long hair out of my face as I took him into my mouth again, sweet moans escaping his throat. Excitement flowed in my veins and my heart pounded in my chest knowing that I was the first one who gave him that kind of pleasure, from time to time I would lift my eyes and glance at his satisfied expression, eyelids unable to keep open from how much he was enjoying it. His member twitched between my lips, indicating that he was close to his release, but he asked me to stop, so I did. "Do you want me to be on top first?" I asked him lovingly, pecking his lips once I straddled him. Steve nodded, hands slipping up my thighs and gripping my hips as he glanced down at my sex. With my right hand, I placed the tip of his shaft at my wet entrance and gradually lowered myself on him, all the while keeping eye contact with the blonde, carefully taking note of his reactions.

As soon as he was all the way in I let out a whimper, placing the palms of my hands on his muscular chest for support. His fingers put a little bit more pressure where he was holding me, then helped me up and down once I started moving. My walls were pretty tight around him and it was driving him over the edge each time he was fully sheathed in. Steve sat up on the mattress, snaking his arms behind my back and kissed me fervently. My moans hitched up once he moved us so he was on top and I was laying on my back, speeding up his thrusting. I held his head in the crook of my neck, my cries becoming louder as I felt my orgasm reaching its peak. A few more sloppier thrusts and his orgasm followed mine, Steve slipped out of me and came all over my belly, right hand massaging his length before his body collapsed on top of me. I kissed his forehead as he rested his face in the crook of my neck, each other's hands holding us in weak embraces.

 

I stirred under the bedsheets, opening my eyes in the darkness of the room to see that Steve was sound asleep. Quietly, I slipped out of his arms and squinted my eyes at the floor, thanks to my night vision I was able to see where my panties were and soon put them back on, along with Steve's large shirt. I moved across the room, walking through his apartment to get in the kitchen for a glass of water. I took a few sips of the tap water, eyes scanning the dark room when I noticed a small object on top of a newspaper, on the table. I stepped closer and picked up what seemed to be a compass, fingers carefully lifting up the lid to reveal that my intuition was right, but something made me furrow my brow. A black and white newspaper clipping with the face of a woman had been placed under the lid, more probably when Steve had still been fighting as Captain America during the war.

"That's Peggy." The lights in the kitchen were suddenly switched on, Steve standing by the doorframe.

I looked at him with an afflicted expression. "I'm sorry, I came for a glass of water..." I said in panic. "I shouldn't have touched it."

His hands cupped mine, a reassuring smile on his features. "Relax, I'm not mad."

I took in a deep breath, then looked down at the woman. She was very familiar now that I could look at her more clearly. "Was she your first love?" I asked him, remembering a beautiful lady in a red dress, she smiled at me and I smiled at her. That woman must've been her.

His expression saddened, gently taking the compass from my hands to look at the picture. "She was."

I run my hand on his back, giving a kiss to his bare shoulder. "A first love is unforgettable." I spoke in a whisper, his blue irises looking down in a pair of hazel ones. "But don't let the thought of a missed opportunity drag you to despair. Cherish the memories of what you once had." 

The corners of his lips lifted up in a small smile, then he leaned down to kiss me. "Thank you..." Steve murmured, closing the lid of the compass before putting it back on the table, then laced his fingers with mine guiding me back to his bedroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I said, I don't know when I'll be able to write the next chapter/s, so I hope you'll stay tuned for more ♡
> 
> Please, tell me what you think of my writing, I would like to improve my skills for the future (:


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The events taking place are the beginning of CA:TWS. (Sorry I jumped right into it, I just wanted to throw some angst around like the awful person that I am.
> 
> ~~When will I stop torturing my OFC?~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who spent another day writing instead of studying. Dass right me. I didn't proof-read this long thing that I wrote, so if you notice some mistakes and stuff, I apologize in advance.
> 
> By the way, it's a bit longer that the previous chapters, so I hope you like it. ♡
> 
> The words I wrote in Russian are the trigger words for the Winter Soldier, after that Viktoria says "Good morning, Soldier" and he replies "I'm ready to answer/follow orders" (I'm not sure of the translation). _Da_ means "Yes" and _Zimniy Soldat_ you have probably guessed right, is Winter Soldier in Russian. omg I'm kind of a mess right now

"Are you going for a run?" I groaned while rubbing my eyes.

Steve turned to look at me startled, the sun had yet to come up. He put on his grey t-shirt and sat on the edge of the bed as I moved under the bedsheets to face him. He switched the lamp on the night stand on and smiled at me. "Yeah, sorry I woke you up."

"Don't worry." I chuckled, sitting up to kiss him. I breathed in his scent, enjoying his last minutes of company before he left. "Should I wait for you to come home so we can have breakfast together?" I asked, lacing my fingers behind his neck. _Home_. It was a nice word, since I started spending most of my free time at his apartment rather than mine, usually watching tv, other times doing more intimate stuff. Natasha was overjoyed when Steve and I finally came out as a couple.

"If you don't have to go to work later-" He started saying but my phone on the nightstand buzzed with a text, making both Steve and I sigh in defeat. "Man, it's like ten to six, why are they calling you in so early?"

I groaned, grabbing my phone and unlocked it to read the text. "Guess I'm gonna find out once I get to work." I showed the text to him, one simple sentence that asked me to meet with Mr. Pierce. "Alright, babe. Have a good workout." I told him, and he leaned to kiss me one more time before he left.

 

I got to the Triskelion and headed up to Pierce's office, barely acknowledging the current black haired secretary greeting me in the corridor. "Here I am." I said as I got in the office, quickly shutting the door behind me.

The man could tell that I was annoyed, a serious expression on my face, just like the one on his. "We've got a problem." He stated, standing up from behind his desk and buttoned his expensive jacket, a frown on his wrinkled features.

I let out a heavy sigh, rubbing my forehead as a slight headache pounded in my skull. "Is it a one-eyed?" I asked him, tilting my head to the side, really hoping that that wasn't the case, but as soon as he nodded, my heart skipped a beat. I straightened my back, speaking with determination. "I'll send the defrosting ordered."

Pierce agreed, then picked up a yellow envelope from his desk and stepped closer to me. "Go there and activate him." He handed me the envelope and spoke under his breath. "You'll need it."

I narrowed my eyes, doubts bugging me. "You're not coming?" I asked him.

"Wish I could, but one SHIELD ship has been highjacked and now I have to explain it to the World Security Council." Pierce replied, a subtle note of anger in his voice. "Fury sent the STRIKE Team, Captain Rogers and Agent Romanoff to free the hostages, Sitwell is among them."

"No need to tell me more, I'll just- ...do my thing!" I shrugged, tightening my grip around the yellow envelope and left Pierce's office.

 

Bucky was awake again, sat in an metal chair with a device around his head for electro-stimulation. I let out an unnoticeable sigh, holding in my hands the yellow envelope that Pierce gave me. I ripped the top open and pulled out a red diary with a star on it, Bucky's eyes widening in an apparent shock. I noticed his uneasiness, and honestly there was nothing I could do about it without getting in some serious trouble.

"Viktoria..." The brunette whispered in Russian, trying to not let the other agents around us hear him. "Please, don't do it."

I stepped closer to him, glancing around at the Hydra agents in distrust, then looked Bucky in the eyes. "I know that deep down you hate me for what I'm about to do..." I whispered, a painful expression on my face. "But I want you to know that once all of this is over, I will do anything I can to get you out of here, even if you won't remember me for the hundredth time."

"It's ready." One of the agents monitoring a computer said, giving me the okay to proceed with the wipe out of the soldier's memory.

I pulled away from him once I saw his features contort in a disappointed expression, then gave the order to the agents. "Begin." One agent put a mouth guard in the soldier's mouth, and the wiping process begun. I opened the book and looked through the pages, and as soon as I found what I needed, I started reading one by one the words out aloud in Russian, while the soldier screamed in pain as electric waves coursed through his brain. "Zhelaniye. Zhivoy. Semnadtsat'. Rassvet. Pech'. Devyat'. Dobroserdechnyy. Vozvrashcheniye na rodinu. Odin. Gruzovoy vagon." The screams stopped echoing through the room as soon as the metal device had been removed from the soldier's head, his breathing heavy, eyes looking almost dead. "Dobroye utro, soldat." I said, eyes narrowing at the sight of that cold expression that I haven't seen in a very long time. This wasn't Bucky anymore, this was the Winter Soldier, ready to kill whatever poor soul crossed his path.

"Ya gotov otvechat'." The Winter Soldier replied after the same agent had removed his mouth guard. He stood up from his chair and stepped closer in front of me.

I finally understood why he didn't escape with me back then, in Bielorussia. Hydra managed to imprint in his brain a series of trigger words that transformed him into a perfectly obedient killing machine, without fear that he would turn against them in the middle of a mission. "Gear up, I've got a job for you." I said in English, an agent handing me a file with Director Fury's data, and I gave it to the Winter Soldier. "Kill this man." I ordered without flinching at my own determination.

He flipped the first page open, a picture of Fury coming into his sight. "I will." He replied in Russian, the instinct of a killer pouring out with his voice too.

As soon as everybody in the room, including the Winter Soldier, scattered to prepare for the mission, I hurried to hide in a secluded area and carefully looked around to make sure that no one would interrupt me. Instead of taking out of my pocket my everyday phone, I pulled out a second one, securing the line before calling Fury. I tried a couple of times, but he wasn't picking up. "Come on, come on, come on...." I whispered after the fifth call, groaning in anger as the voice mail turned on once again. "Fuck!" I cursed throwing a punch to the wall, a small crack on the hard surface when I pulled it back. As soon as I heard footsteps coming my way, I put back the phone in my pocket and crossed my arms over my chest.

"Commander, we sent our agents on the field, they're ready to intervene in ten minutes." The guy informed me. When did they start addressing me with that title? 

I brushed it off and nodded. "Where's the target now?" I asked him, leaning against the wall.

"Downtown." He replied.

I furrowed my brow, darkness falling on my face. "Tell the agents to avoid civilian casualties, we don't want to attract anymore attention than what's already to go down in public." The man nodded in understanding, waiting for me to go with him, but I just stood there, expecting him to leave. "Well? Go and do as you're told!" I lost my previous composure, the agent stammering in fright apologized and turned on his heels. As soon as I was left alone, I picked up my second phone once again, hoping Fury would answer this time. "Just pick-up the damn call, you idiot!"

_"Who are you calling an idiot?!"_ Fury's voice suddenly barked into the microphone.

"You, fucking prick!" I was so angry it took him that long to answer me. I sighed heavily, lowering my voice. He didn't have time to throw a remark that I was already warning him "Listen, they're onto you."

_"Who's onto me?"_ He asked, sounding skeptical.

"Just stay alive-!" I said, but there was a loud crush on the other side of the line, car horns resounding in the background with muffled groans. "Nick?!" I gasped.

_"Kinda busy staying alive right now!"_ He yelled, the microphone far from his mouth. 

The line fell shortly after and I took in a deep breath, putting away the phone to run to the control room. "Report!" I yelled, the agent glancing at me startled from the abrupt order.

"Police decoys have already gone in action." I looked at the satellite screens and saw Fury's car being smashed with brute force by other Hydra agents. "The Winter Soldier is in position."

"Give me a damn comm." I snatched it from someone's hand and put the device in my ear, listening to the transmissions. "SWAT Team, get the target out of the vehicle." I said into the comm, receiving a 'copy that' in return. The fake SWATs got out of a black van and swiftly positioned a battering-ram against the bulletproof window of Fury's car, ready to break it down. Three hits later, they almost had him, but suddenly the window broke, bullets flying at the Hydra agents and the car began moving on its own, trying to escape the place. "Zimniy Soldat." I said, my voice firm. "Are you in position?" I spoke in Russian.

_"Da."_ Came his dry reply.

"Target is moving your way." My hazel eyes scanned the computer screens, their locations signaled by red dots. "Take him down."

There was a sudden explosion on the other side of the line, Fury's red dot surpassing the Winter Soldier's on the screen, until it stopped moving a few feet away. Silence followed as the soldier approached the vehicle. _"Target has escaped."_

I made a heavy sigh, which the agents in the room got as one of disappointment, but I was very relieved that Fury had managed to escape. "To all agents, gather at the rendezvous and let the Winter Soldier go in pursuit of the target." I took of my comm and threw it on a desk. "Try to track him down while I'm gone."

"Yes, ma'am." Everyone answered.

I might've had an idea where Fury could've gone to, but first I needed to see for myself. I stopped by at home to grab my gun and changed into new more elastic clothes, then headed towards Steve's apartment. By the time I got there, it was already dark outside, Steve's motorbike was parked in front of his condo, and I assumed he had already gotten home. As I entered the hall, I saw Sharon Carter with a laundry basket in her arms, heading downstairs. "Sharon, hey." I greeted her. She nodded at me, smiling a bit. "Is Steve home?"

"Yeah, he got back a few minutes ago." The blonde replied. "Is everything okay? You look worried."

I shrugged, trying to be polite for once since we were coworkers and I didn't want to take out my frustrations on her. "Don't worry, just a rough day of work."

Sharon nodded, then motioned to the basket in her arms. "Well, gotta go now. Bye, Viktoria."

I waved her off and started climbing the stairs, till I was in front of Steve's door ready to knock when I heard some forties music playing. I listened closely to pick up any other sounds, barely able to hear two low voices, one was Steve's and the other was Fury's. Suddenly, there was a loud bang of a bullet being fired and a loud cry of pain, which gave me permission to bust through the door with my gun ready to shoot in my hands. Two more gunshots and I saw Fury's body falling to the floor, Steve crouching down to help the other man. "Steve!" I yelled in panic, the soldier quickly grabbing Fury by the arms to drag his body to the kitchen. "Oh my God..." I holstered my weapon while crouching down to look at Nick's wounds, which were bleeding profusely.

The man grabbed Steve's wrist and coughed in pain, opening the palm of his hand to reveal a silver USB. "Don't trust anyone." Steve took the USB in his hands, quickly glancing at me in confusion, adrenaline pumping in his veins.

"Captain Rogers?" Sharon's voice sounded through the apartment as she carefully looked around with her gun pointed in front of her.

"Agent, call an ambulance!" I yelled as soon as I heard her voice. Steve looked at me in disbelief, eyes moving between me and the blonde in alert.

"Captain, I'm Agent 13 of SHIELD Special Service." She breathed out, then put away her gun.

"Kate?" Steve murmured. I didn't know that she was undercover, I thought he knew her real name, but he didn't.

"I'm assigned to protect you." She told him, but he still wasn't convinced.

"On whose order?" Steve was clearly mad by now.

I applied some pressure on Fury's wounds, trying to slow down the bleeding, but I could feel that his pulse was getting slower after each beat. "Hang in there, buddy. We're not gonna let you die."

"His." Sharon replied, eyes widening at the scene.

"He's unconscious." I looked at her, my heart beating fast in my chest.

Sharon pulled out of her pocket a transceiver and pressed a button, speaking into the microphone. "Foxtrot is down, he's unresponsive. I need EMTs."

_"Do we have a 20 on the shooter?"_ Someone asked on the other side of the line.

"Tell him I'm in pursuit." Steve said before sprinting through the apartment, his body colliding with the glass on the window in his living room, following the shooter.

"I thought that he knew who you are." I whispered, eyes fixed on the body next to me. I moved my hands on Fury's chest and started performing CPR. When she tried to say something in remark, I stopped her. "Just keep applying pressure to the wound until the medics arrive!"

 

I was back in my apartment, washing away the blood from my body in the shower, a sour taste of disappointment in my mouth. I had just received a text from Nat, saying that Nick Fury had died at the hospital. My efforts to try and warn him were in vain. Once I let the Winter Soldier loose from his leash, he wouldn't have stopped until his job was completed. As soon as I got out of the shower, I received a call from Steve. "Hey... I just heard." I spoke out, rubbing my tired eyes.

_"Fury had bugged my apartment."_ Steve informed me without hesitation. I furrowed my brow, a feeling of anxiety giving me shivers. If that was true, the Director must've been monitoring Steve for months, he must've even known what Steve and I spoke about during breakfast or listened to us while we were having sex... I was incredibly disgusted by that thought. _"Listen, I've just met with Alexander Pierce. I'll come to your place as soon as I'm out of the Triskelion."_

I sighed, not really sure what to say. I just couldn't believe that all of this was happening currently and I had to lie to the one that I loved. "Alright, love you, Steve..." I said the words without thinking them through, soon realizing that that was the first time I've ever said it to him. 

Panic rose in my belly, but soon cooled down once he said it back. "I love you too, Viks." Steve hung up and I released a breath I didn't know I had been holding in for a long time. My brow furrowed in doubt and I abruptly stood up from the sofa, hands roaming through the things in my apartment, looking behind, under and inside every piece of furniture there was, but I didn't find any secret bug. I was one to occasionally search through my things just to be sure that no one had managed to spy on me, and was thankful to not find anything yet again. My phone rang again, making me groan in frustration. "Agent Alkaeva."

_"Your boyfriend is on the run!"_ Pierce yelled at me through the line. _"All Shield is looking for him, you better tell me now where he went or else..."_

"Are you threatening me?" I spat out. "Rogers called me a few minutes ago and told me he'd come to meet me at my place." I was fuming, anger and venom pouring after each word. "He was my responsibility and you should have warned me before doing anything stupid!" Silence followed after my yelling. 

Pierce finally replied with a calm tone, trying to avoid me getting even more mad. _"Never mind. STRIKE Team has already been dispatched in pursuit."_

"Listen to me, Pierce." My voice lowered dangerously as I spoke. "Don't do things behind my back, because then _I_ have to clean the mess you make. Now, let me do my job without interruption."

_"Understood. Take the soldier if you need to."_ He hung up.

"I won't need to..." I murmured to myself, calling Rumlow to know his position. As soon as I got to the mall, I met with the STRIKE leader, the rest of the team split into small groups to look for Steve, who apparently had a companion with him. "I can't believe he escaped you..." Actually, I had no doubt Steve could take on an entire group of elite agents, they just weren't that elite in my opinion... As much as my exterior was calm and collected, my heart was beating harshly against my ribcage, for I knew that I was playing with fire and someone had already got burned.

"Snake the upper levels. Work down on me." Rumlow growled into his earpiece, eyes glancing at me as I moved towards the escalators, too many people around us. We could easily miss the Captain, or so I thought. "Let's go." Rumlow said, one hand slightly resting on the small curve of my back once we climbed on the escalator. He was looking around, eyes scanning the multitude of faces that surrounded us, while mine met a familiar green.

_Natasha._ The redhead had a hoodie on, perfectly disguised to fit through the crowd and, behind her, stood Steve. A cap on his head and a pair of fake glasses on his nose, clothes very different from what he usually wears. 

Nat sent me a worried look, pupils glancing at Rumlow beside me and I made a small tilt with my head, speaking to the black haired man. "He might be hiding in another shop." I said, trying to draw his attention, but he was still looking around.

I looked up at Nat, noticing that Steve had seen me too, a pained expression on his face. The redhead suddenly turned to the soldier, hands grabbing him behind his neck and she pulled him down to kiss her, the palms of his hands resting on her waist. The tactic worked, because as soon as Rumlow and I surpassed the two of them, he turned to me and smirked, one brow raised. "Think you can kiss me now that your boyfriend is a fugitive?" 

He chuckled, making me roll my eyes at him in annoyance. "Keep on dreaming, Rumlow. I might break up with him once we get him."

"He might have a heart-attack once he learns you turned on him." The man said with a subtle note of satisfaction.

I smirked deviously. "Who cares, I was tired of lying anyway." And, in part, that was true. I just had to push through a little bit more and follow my plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how this is gonna work out, but I might actually add five more chapters rather than just 10. Anyway, we'll see what'll happen in the meantime.
> 
> I would really appreciate some feedback guys, I really hope you're liking this Series. ♡


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First part: Viktoria's POV  
> Second part: Steve's POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My life consists of being tired and writing fanficion. I have no idea how this one turned out, I re-read it, so I'm posting it. I might re-write a few of these chapters in the future idk
> 
> btw, I wanted to schedule this chapter for a future (and automatic) update and soon realized that can't be done because it's not an actual feature of this site, which is a shame... So, I hope you like this chapter anyways

**Viktoria's POV**

It had been a day already, no signs from Steve nor Natasha was picking up my secured line calls. They must've been feeling betrayed, I knew it. The Winter Soldier was still under my complete control, no faltering in his obedience. My back was leaning against the wall, arms crossed over my chest as he sat by the table, waiting for Pierce to come in the kitchen, one shiny gun resting on the flat wooden surface. Pierce finally walked in in gym clothing, grabbing a tetra pack of milk from the fridge. As soon as he let it down on the counter, he first noticed the soldier looking straight at him then me behind him. 

A female voice spoke from the corridor, saying that she was about to leave, probably the housemaid, and he told her that he didn't need anything else. "Want some milk?" He asked, almost sounded as a joke. I saw the soldier tilt his head in confusion once I stepped closer to him, a from on his features. "The timetable has moved. Our window is limited."

"There's no room for error." I said, face expressionless yet my voice was serious. "Yet, instead of launching Project Insight we're chasing after the Captain." The tension in the room could be cut with a knife, and I was getting impatient. I knew Pierce was hiding something from me, that's why I wanted to push him to jump onto the next step of the plan.

"I know, Viktoria, but we can't proceed unless we stop him and..." The man trailed off, eyes looking down at the Winter Soldier, then he moved to sit in front on him. "Two targets, Level Six, and they already cost me Zola."

"Zola was meant to be moved from there..." I said, tilting my head to remind him. "But what's done it's done."

"I know." Pierce replied, nodding his head, then fixed his eyes on the soldier. "I want confirmed death in ten hours."

The housemaid appeared in the kitchen after a moment, looking at us startled. "Sorry, Mr. Pierce, I... forgot my phone." Her feet started backing up, eyes glancing at the two next to her boss. Pierce sighed disappointed, as if it was the woman's fault for what was about to happen. The man's hand reached for the soldier's gun on the table, shaking his head at her, then fired the gun, killing her coldblooded. I was disgusted by him. I wished I could grab that same weapon and shoot one bullet to his head, just to stop all of this, but I couldn't do it, at least not yet.

"Two targets, 10 hours." Pierce repeated, setting down the weapon on its previous spot. "Gear up, Arctic Fox." He told me whilst leaning casually on the backrest of the chair, as if killing his housemaid was a normal thing to do and not care for. "I want the two of you to finally crush these bugs down."

I nodded, letting my arms fall to my sides. "Let's go, Soldat. The hunt just got serious." I said in Russian to the soldier, and he stood up, slowly picking up his gun and put it back in its holster.

 

I gave the Winter Soldier the order to get back to our hideout and wait for me, whilst I had to do something under the gird for a while, making sure that no one could follow me, so I left all of my electronic devices in my car and headed by foot toward my destination, until I reached a secluded area somewhere in the city. It was around three in the morning, and there was no one around, until I heard some footsteps coming close to where I was hiding. I didn't move until I was sure that the person was indeed who I had been waiting for.

The footsteps stopped echoing down the narrow street, a female voice saying out aloud a code phrase. "Do you know where I can find a bakery that's still opened."

It was her, Agent Hill. I turned around the corner and replied to her. "I know one that's always open."

She turned to look at me, hands in the pockets of her black coat and doubtful expression on her face. She didn't know I'de be the one meeting her. "Then can you be so kind to tell me the name?"

"The Secret Ingredient." I replied and she finally knew why I had sent her an urgent call with a code phrase to confirm our identities. "I need to talk to you."

Hill raised her eyebrows at me, barely wanting to hear what I had to say, but nodded anyway. "Do you know what's currently happening at Shield?"

"Shield is falling down, that's what's happening." I deadpanned, stepping closer to her while glancing around us. "And I need you to do me a favor."

The woman sneered, disbelief in her expression. "A favor? That's hard to believe, considering the fact that you're following Pierce's orders."

I sighed in frustration, bringing my hands to rub my face, then let the fingers slip through my loose hair. "Maria, please, what I'm trying to do right now is save Steve and Natasha's life, I don't care what else happens." My voice was cracking by then. The only time she had seen me so desperate was when Coulson had died. "As soon as I know that they're safe, I'll be ready to kill Pierce with my own hands." 

The look of determination made her think about it for a moment, she wasn't ready yet to trust me, but she'd give it a shot. "What do I need to do?" Maria asked.

I shrugged whilst also tilting my head with raised eyebrow, hopefully not being to hesitant about it. "I hope you don't mind going undercover. I'll get you in the team without anyone noticing."

"That's your plan?" Maria asked, irritation in her tone.

"I know, sucks, right?" I nodded. "Trust me, it'll work out... Hopefully."

 

I went back to the base, the Winter Soldier waiting for me in a locker room. He eyed me as soon as I walked through the door, closing it behind me. He didn't say anything, just sat there in a corner of the room, silence between the two us. I broke eye contact when I walked to a table and lifted up the lid of a big black box, then pulled out a pair of thick white leather pants and a black undershirt with long sleeves, laying them down on the table. The soldier kept his eyes fixed on my body as I tied my brown hair un in a tight bun and then begun removing my clothes and shoes, staying in my underwear, then slipped in the leather pants and the undershirt, tucking the long hem inside the pants. I picked up from the box a breastplate, made from many v-shaped layers of leather and fur, all white, and put it on top of the black undershirt, covering the entire front and back side. 

I started tying the thin attachment straps under the arms that left the sides under the arms exposed, and only then noticed that the soldier had left his place to step closer to me, flesh and metal fingers reaching for the other two straps that I hadn't tied yet, and he did it for me. I furrowed my brow confused. Why did he do it? I remembered that time when I had helped him with his old vest straps, when his prosthetic arm made it difficult to perform certain easy tasks. "Thank you." I murmured without putting too much thought into it. I couldn't help my eyes from looking at his face and remind myself that this man right here, it wasn't Bucky, those cold blue irises were the Winter Soldier's.

"We have less than five hours to take down the targets." He said to me in Russian, my heart sinking after the painful reminder.

I nodded at him, quickly slipping my feet into a pair of white combat boots and glanced at the contents of the box one last time, taking out my old fox shaped mask and gave a close look at it. My lungs took in a deep breath, then released it slowly. The _Arctic Fox_. I didn't want to be that person anymore, I just couldn't bear all those secrets on my shoulders and it was finally time to put an end to it all. "What's my name?" I asked him in Russian and without hesitation, he answered.

"Arkticheskaya Lisa." I cringed at his words and gripped my fingers tightly around the white mask.

No matter how much I despised the person who I used to be, she was still part of me and, without her, I would've never gotten to the point where I was. "Damn right I am." I said in English, my voice truly confident for the first time in a while. We headed out of the locker-room and went to the control room. "Alright, folks, time is running out. I need the location of the targets now."

"We just got a result from the research." One agent informed me, then displayed something on a computer screen for me. "They have Agent Sitwell with them."

I nodded, turning to five STRIKE members and spoke to them. "Gear up and get the car ready, you and the Winter Soldier are going after them." Then I turned to the soldier. "Kill Sitwell, we don't need him anymore." He nodded, leaving with the first part of the team in pursuit of Steve and Natasha.

 

"Status?" I asked through my comm, but the agents that I sent after Steve and Nat weren't answering. "Drive faster!" I told the driver next to the and he pressed the gas pedal further down, until my eyes finally saw a few figures coming into view from afar. I put my mask on as got out of the car as soon as it had stopped, signaling to the agents to round on Steve, Natasha and another guy that I seemed to recognize from somewhere. Steve had a shocked expression on his face, he didn't even attempt to fight back the quantity of agents that shouted at him to get on his knees and drop his shield down. The sound of an engine above my head made me look up, then I stepped closer to Rumlow, pointing at the helicopter. "Put the guns down." Steve's eyes glanced up at my masked face, recognizing my muffled voice. He couldn't believe it, he just couldn't.

 

**Steve's POV**

Bucky was alive, but he didn't recognize me. Why didn't he recognize me? Hydra agents pointed their weapons at us, and I just couldn't understand what was happening anymore. 

"Put the guns down." That voice. I know that voice. She was standing in front of my eyes, dressed in a strange white suit, a fox mask covering her face.

Why was she doing this? One question after the other popped in my mind, the shock on my face wasn't enough to express how I truly felt inside. Betrayed and tricked, lied to who know how much. Was there anything real? Bucky was alive and Viktoria knew it.

The agents put handcuffs around our wrists and shoved us into a black van, closing the door right in our faces. "It was him." I spoke out after a while, eyes fixed on the heavy handcuffs that restrained my movements. "He looked right at me like he didn't even know me."

"How is that even possible?" Sam asked. "It was, like, seventy years ago."

I thought about it, that moment when I finally put to good use my abilities and saved my best friend. "Zola. Bucky's whole unit was captured in '43. Zola experimented on him." I explained, then looked up. "Whatever he did helped Bucky survive the fall." I shook my head, yet again in disbelief. "And Viktoria... I can't believe she turned on us."

Sam's eyebrows raised. "Viktoria, like, long brown hair, hazel eyes?" I gave him a furrowed glance, there was no chance they could actually know each other.

"None of that's your fault fault, Steve." Natasha remarked, a groan escaping her mouth as blood dripped out of her wound, from the left shoulder.

"We need to get a doctor here." Sam told the two masked agents that were in the van with us, concern in his voice. If we don't put pressure on that wound, she's gonna bleed out here in the truck." 

Suddenly, the agent closer to him pointed an electric baton at Sam's face, but soon twirled it and hit the agent sitting next to him, knocking him unconscious with a harsh kick to the head, his body falling limp between our feet. The agent removed the mask, revealing the face of a brunette, my eyes widening at Maria Hill's stunt. "That thing was squeezing my brain." The woman groaned, pushing away with her fingers the loose strands of hair from her face. Maria gave a quick glance at Sam and then turned to me. "Who's this guy?"

"Agent Hill, how did you get in here?" I asked her, completely ignoring her question.

"Well," she sighed out, "you have to thank your girlfriend for that." My heart skipped a beat. Just when I thought that the person I gave my heart to had betrayed me, she risked her beautiful ass to save us. "I don't know what's her plan, but she wants me to bring you to safety."

 

"I wasn't sure who to trust." Fury said weakly, his good eye looking at me. Another thing that I had to live with, dead people coming back to life. More lies.

"If you knew someone was going to kill you, why didn't you at least prepare yourself before it happened?" I asked the man. He was lying in bed, his conditions were terrible, but he was still alive.

"I didn't have time." He replied. "Agent Alkaeva called me a minute before I was attacked."

I looked down at the ground below my feet, unable to process the fact that she knew and yet didn't say anything to prevent most of the things that have happened. "Well then, if she knew..." My words caught in my throat.

"Steve," Nat drew my attention to her, "she saw us at the mall and Rumlow was standing right next to her." The redhead pointed out. "She didn't say anything to protect us."

"And the missile that almost killed us?" I asked skeptical.

"That's on me..." She sighed out. "I wasn't picking up her calls."

I was hurt, to say the least. A person that I came to love those past months turned out to be someone I didn't actually know, or so I thought. But Bucky? She'd have to sit down and explain it to me, and this time I'd know if she was lying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You might have noticed the lack of gifs... it's due to a lack of time for gif-hunts. Also, I don't even know why I'm still writing when I could be sleeping.
> 
> Guess who's reached writer's block yet again?? well, it was nice while it lasted.
> 
> Thank you for reading, even if some of you might not like it, I appreciate you taking some of your time to read this poor mess that my mind produces when it's overly stressed. ♡


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is quite of a slow-build chapter where Viktoria tries really hard to maintain her loyalty hidden at least until the very last moment. Will she be able to make it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've never been more productive in the wrong things this much. I'm posting this one chapter then I'm off to study for school, ~~which I hope may god help me cause I feel like I'm loosing my mind.~~
> 
> Now, I didn't proof-read it, so there may be some errors or I might have missed a few word (even doubled them) while writing. As always, stay cool and I hope you like it ♡

"Sir, he's unstable." Said a doctor as Pierce walked through the door of the hideout, Rumlow and I following right behind.

I saw the agents pointing their weapons at the soldier's head, and quickly furrowed my brow. "Weapons down." They reluctantly obeyed. Everyone was tense, since the prisoners managed to escape under the STRIKE Team's noses.

"Mission report." Pierce told the soldier, but he was staring blankly in front of him. "Mission report now." Pierce insisted, anger growing along with his impatience. The man bit his lip, stepping closer to Bucky, bent on his knees and then abruptly slapped the non-responding asset. My fists clenched, eyes narrowing in anger.

Bucky clenched his jaw, but relaxed it soon, head turning to look at Pierce, who was towering next to him. "The man on the bridge." He spoke almost in a whisper. "Who was he?" He was remembering. My heart skipped a beat, eyes widening a bit in surprise.

"You met him earlier this week in another assignment." Replied Pierce. That was the truth, yes, but just the tip of it.

"I knew him." Bucky's blue irises moved from Pierce to look at me, as if silently saying _"you know what I'm talking about"_. I didn't avert my gaze, just stood there with my arms crossed over my chest, expressionless face.

Pierce took a glimpse of me and raised his brows, then grabbed a stool and sat in front of Bucky. "Your work has been a gift to mankind. You shaped the century." The way Pierce spoke, his quite proud tone gave me chills. The Winter Soldier shaped the century under Hydra's command, not because he did it willingly. "And I need you to do it one more time. But, if you don't do your part, I can't do mine." That son of a bitch... The blood in my veins was boiling, begging for me to release my anger on him and just kill him. Not yet, I reminded myself, not yet. "And Hydra can't give the world the freedom it deserves." Pierce raised his left hand, giving me a sign to come closer.

"But I knew him..." Bucky muttered, eyes looking full of pain and sadness, like a lost and wounded animal.

Pierce sighed, standing up from the stool and looked me straight in the eyes. "Prep him."

I nodded at him in reply, then glanced at the soldier, wishing I didn't have to do this again. "Fix the arm." I told the doctors as Pierce started leaving the room, but nobody moved.

One doctor, hesitant, tried to speak against it. "He's been out of Cryofreeze too long."

Pierce stopped in his tracks, furrowing his brow. "Then wipe him and start over. Give Agent Alkaeva the book with the codes."

"No need to." I said. "I remember them." The doctors nodded and moved across the room towards the soldier, one turning on the wiping memory machine and the other getting the mouth guard for Bucky. The pushed him against the backrest of the chair and he looked at me dangerously, licking his lips before biting down at the mouth guard. Some metal restraints automatically closer around his arms to keep him in place, bare chest heaving in anticipation as the top part of the machine lowered on his head, ready to release electric shock waves to manipulate his brain yet again. As soon as he started screaming in pain, I began reciting the trigger words like venom being spat out from my tongue, eyes fixed on his suffering form. Once the machine had stopped torturing him, the restraints around his arms opened, and he weakly stood up from the chair, chest taking in deep breaths after the had spat out the mouth guard. "Dobroye utro, soldat." I said a bit hesitant.

"Ya gotov otvechat'." The Winter Soldier murmured, that familiar death glare in his eyes had returned.

 

I busted through the door on the top floor, where the Council Room was at the Triskelion, and hear one of the Councilmen call Pierce a smug son of a bitch. It made me cheer for him on the inside, but I was too busy pretending that we had a bigger problem. "Sir." Everyone in the room turned to look at me, a smug grin on Pierce's face as he saw more agents following behind me.

"I guess I've got the floor." Pierce tilted his head while launching a challenging glance at the other Councilmen as the agents behind me pulled out their guns and pointed them at the other people.

"I've sent a few STRIKEs after them." I informed him, and he nodded pleased. My nose picked up a familiar scent masked by heavy loads of an expensive perfume. It was faint, but very distinct. I glanced at the Councilwoman and furrowed my brow, smirking faintly at her. _Natasha_. My smirk faded as soon as I heard Rumlow's voice in my earpiece. "Sir, the Insight Helicarriers have been launched."

"See?" Pierce chuckled proudly. "This is the kind of news that I want to hear."

Suddenly, my earpiece buzzed, the line of the transmission had been hacked. _"Virtual Girl Scout here. Do you copy, Watchfox?"_ That voice was Agent Hill's. The sound of explosions going off in the sky distracted me, and I moved my eyes to the windows, seeing someone being targeted outside by the cannons of the Helicarriers.

"Sorry, Sir." I spoke, turning towards the exit. "I gotta take care of something real quick." Pierce shrugged nonchalant, more caught up into his speeches about power, hopeful he could turn the Councilmen on his side. I exited the room and as soon as the doors closed behind me, I clicked a button on my earpiece. "Watchfox copy. What's the status out there?"

 _"Alpha and Bravo have been locked."_ Hill told me. _"Status on the Eagles?"_

I sighed. "I'm afraid shit's about to go down." If I could keep my loyalty hidden just a bit longer, it would've been fantastic, but a sudden sound of groans and thuds made me turn towards the door, worry lacing my voice as I spoke to Hill. "Well, shit just went down. Watchfox out." I busted through the door and swiftly unholstered my gun, pointing it towards the Councilwoman, who had just removed her blonde wig to reveal a red mane under it. She managed to disable the present agents and was pointing a gun to Pierce's head.

"Don't just stand there, kill her!" Pierce growled at me, but I slowly lowered my weapon to the floor instead of putting it back in its holster on my right hip.

"I'm afraid I can't do that." I replied coldly, the man's face wrinkling in confusion. "I can't risk a hole in your head." Natasha caught on the hint and tilted her head at me deciding to further my secret.

"Yeah, wise decision." She told one Councilmen to grab my gun and keep it pointed at me, while she gave her weapon to another one and headed to the computer, skillfully breaching into the system to load all the secret data onto the Internet. My eyes glanced at the pin on Nat's blue jacket, mentally cursing myself for having forgotten to switch them with the harmless ones. Pierce's phone was on a table nearby, and I prayed he wouldn't try to reach for it anytime soon.

"If you do this, none of your past is gonna remain hidden." Pierce took a careful step towards the table, gun still pointed at his head. Natasha's fingers hovered for a moment over the keyboard, green eyes taking a glimpse of the Hydra head before she resumed typing. "Are you sure you're ready for the world to see you as you really are?" He got really close, and my breath hitched in my throat.

"Are you?" She spat back calmly, raising one brow at him. I couldn't even dare to think about of the amount of data that would the uploaded online.

On the holographic screen on the window popped up an error message, saying that the disabling encryption was restricted, and that Alpha Level members were needed to proceed, which made Pierce sigh in relief with a smug grin on his face. "It's an executive order that only two Alpha Level members can unlock."

"Don't worry, company's coming." The redhead replied, launching the man a challenging look when the engine of a helicopter resounded in close proximity, her green eyes meeting my hazel ones with a slight satisfaction. I had no idea what that meant, but once I saw the person that got out of the helicopter and entered the Council room from the landing platform, I released a breath of pure relief.

There he stood, alive and a little injured, Nick Fury, all dressed in his usual black attire with that stinky eye sending daggers to Pierce's head. "Looks like you're glad to see me, cause I thought you had me killed." Fury nodded at Natasha and she grabbed her gun, pointing it at Pierce's head once again, forcing him to stand still for a retinal scan. As soon as the retinal scan was confirmed, the encryption code was accepted and all the filed dropped on the Internet.

All it took was one moment for me to get distracted and Pierce had already activated the deadly pins on the Councilmen's jackets, fire burning holes in their chests, groans of pain echoing in the room. "Unless you want a two-inch hole in your sternum, I'd put that gun down." The man's face wrinkled into a satisfied grin, then nodded his head for me to take Fury's gun as Natasha lowered hers onto the table. "I'm sorry the person you trusted turned out to be your downfall." He was holding out his phone, thumb ready to press if anything was about to happen.

I snatched the weapon from Fury's hand and pointed it at him. "Don't even think about trying to remove it, the signal will make it go off." I said coldly while looking at the redhead, hoping she would take the hint.

"What did I tell you, Agent? The pins were a much needed accessory." Pierce laughed as he headed for the computer, Fury and Natasha moving out of the way while I still had my gun pointed at them.

"Whatever, just see how long will it take for the satellites to link to the Helicarriers." I spat out impatient and he did as I said, a male voice replying to him shortly after. "I guess we've stalled enough." I said, but it wasn't meant for Pierce, I hoped Maria would hear me.

 _"We're almost there, Watchfox. Tell me everything's all right up there."_ Agent Hill spoke to my comm in a nervous tone.

My brow furrowed at the rising number of targets on the screen, heart pounding harshly inside of my ribcage, until it suddenly dropped to only three targets. The four of us turned our heads towards the window, watching as the Helicarriers targeted each other, cannons firing to destroy whatever they had to. A sigh of relief escaped my mouth whilst Pierce groaned in frustration, his near victory shredding to millions of pieces. "Time to go, Councilwoman, Viktoria." Pierce addressed us, but I wasn't going to follow his orders anymore, I was finally free. 

Natasha activated a Widow Bite between her fingers and received a strong electric shock from the device, successfully disabling the armed pin on her jacket, while I moved my aim from Fury and pointed the tip of the gun towards Pierce, firing one bullet to his lower back, his body falling to the ground like Natasha's. "I'm sorry the person you trusted turned out to be your downfall." I repeated his words, handing the bullet to Fury and crouched beside Nat, taking her face between my shaky hands. "Nat, you okay? Just say something."

She was unconscious, but a whimper escaped her plump lips as she squinted her eyes open. "Those really do sting..." She murmured and I chuckled, helping her up to her feet. "Oh, you sure have some patience for not killing him sooner."

"Yeah," I nodded absentmindedly, "it seems that I do."

 _"Viktoria, Steve is still on Charlie!"_ Maria told me through the earpiece.

"What?" I gasped, turning around to look outside of the window. Two Helicarriers were down, one was still blowing up in the sky. "Put me on the line." I told her and she quickly switched the transmissions. "Steve?" I asked in panic, but he wasn't answering.

"What's wrong?" Natasha asked me while resting one hand on my right shoulder.

"Something's wrong!" Now I was definitely worried. "Maria said that she's launched the order while Steve was still on the Helicarrier."

 _"I'm uploading the signal of his transmitter to your phone, see if you can find him."_ My phone beeped in my pocket and I pulled it out, a red dot glowing on the screen.

"Got him." I said, then looked at Fury. "Think you can drop me off on that thing?"

He nodded once, starting for the landing platform where the helicopter was. "I actually think it's gonna drop on us if we don't move." We boarded the helicopter and lifted in the air just as the Helicarrier crashed against the side of the building, Fury behind controls. My eyes switched from the falling aircraft to my my phone, the red dot becoming bigger as it showed that Steve was close, but I couldn't see him anywhere.

"We gotta pick up Sam, he's still inside the building!" Said Natasha on the microphone.

Nick made a harsh manoeuvre, the helicopter leaning to it's side when a man came into view from the sky, his body dropping inside of the opened side of the vehicle. Nat and I grabbed him before he could slip out from the other side. "Sam?" I gasped as I gave a close look to the man's face. He was the guy I that met one morning while out for a run.

"Man, I knew it was you!" Sam's brow eyes widened as he saw me.

"Shush!" I put my finger on Sam's mouth as I heard Steve's faint voice through the comm, he was talking to someone. "I can hear him. Steve?" He wasn't replying.

 _"Bucky. You've known me your whole life."_ His breathing was ragged, as if was in some kind of pain. _"Your name is James Buchanan Barnes."_ Bucky was with him. A loud groan of pain made my heart skip a beat, and I looked back at the exploding Helicarrier, catching a glimpse of Steve's shield dropping in the water below.

Everything seemed to slow down once his earpiece went silent, my heart stopping at the sight of Steve's still body falling towards the water below the ship. "Steve-" That was all I saw before I instinctively jumped out of the helicopter, Natasha's voice yelling behind me. I pushed myself through the water, swimming towards the point where his body had fallen, spotting two heads above the uneven surface. One was Steve's, the other Bucky's. He pulled the blonde's body towards the shore, leaving him on the soil as I got out of the water too, dropping on my knees to feel his pulse on his neck. "Love, please, wake up..." I looked at the blood pouring out of a wound on his abdomen, then up at Bucky. He had a look of shock on his features, as if he had just gotten back to himself. I knew he had shot him, but I didn't blame him, it was all my fault.

I shook my head, quickly removing my jacket and placed it under Steve's head, then positioned my hands on top of his chest, one above the other, then pushed down pumping hard and fast a couple of times. "Hold on," I sobbed, "I'm not letting you, not you too..." I tilted his head back and lifted the chin, pinching his nose and covered his mouth with mine and blew until I've seen the chest rise, then back again pumping his chest, repeating the same actions a couple of times until Steve's lungs finally coughed out the water that had pooled inside of them. I sighed out in relief, pressing a button on my earpiece. "Nat, Steve needs medical attention, now!"

 _"Hold on, we're close."_ She replied.

"Where are you going?" I looked up at Bucky's back turned to me. He was leaving whilst I was putting pressure on Cap's wound, who was still unconscious. The brunette eyed me for a moment, he didn't say anything, just shook his head and resumed walking away. I wanted to stop him, but I couldn't let Steve alone, not when his life was in serious danger.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Feelings, feelings, feelings... It's hard to know what to do when your heart is aching.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, darlings, I've had some spare time (actually wrote when studying was just too much to take in) and here's the new chapter.
> 
> When you feel like the whole world hates you, there's that one person who reminds you that you're not alone in your messy life. I just love Natasha, we all do. ♡

Bucky was standing with his hands in the pockets of his hoodie, a cap on his head, shielding his face from the security cameras around the museum. "I knew I'd find you here." I said when I stepped closer to him. He glanced at me, casual clothes and hair tied under my hoodie, sunglasses on my nose.

Bucky took in some air, as if to say something, but then stopped himself, blue irises looking back at a picture of him when he was in the army. "I don't recognize that guy." He said in a low tone. "Whoever I was before... You took it away from me. My whole life." There was venom in his voice, yet his exterior was too calm. "I won't let you bring me back to Hydra." He whispered the last part, a clear threat in his words.

I shook my head lightly, slipping my hands in my pockets, Bucky flinching as he thought I was about to do something funny. "I'm not here to bring you back." I replied to him, his shoulders relaxing for a brief moment. "What I did..." I murmured, eyes lowering to the floor. "You asked me to promise you something very important." I said, his brow furrowing, trying to recall the memory, but his mind gave him a blank response. "I promised that I would never forget our time together and that one day, when the right time came, I'd tell you everything you wanted to know."

"I-" he stuttered, then shook his head. "I need some time alone. Away from everyone." I nodded in understanding, my heart clenching in my chest.

"I'm sorry..." I murmured, a few stray tears running behind my sunglasses onto my cheeks. "I have tried looking for you, you know? These past years..." I took in a deep breath, fingers reaching up to brush away the tears.

Bucky glanced one more time at the picture of the man that he used to be, a strange feeling in his heart as he thought about me. "Viktoria?" He said, and I turned to look at him behind my sunglasses. He remembered it.

My heart skipped a beat when he said my name, a question lingering between us. "Yes?"

"Did you love me?" He asked, a crease on his forehead. I nodded without hesitation. "But you love him now." 

I didn't know what to say, many things went through my mind in that moment. "I hurt you both," I sighed heavily, "I don't deserve love after what I've done." Silence followed between us, only the cheerful voices of the museum visitors echoing through the halls. "I've got a few safe-houses all around the world if you want to disappear." He eyed me suspiciously. "Money, passports, transportations. Wherever you want to go, I'll help you out."

"What about you?" Bucky asked me, one brow raised. It was funny for a moment since he wasn't used to doing that. "You're not going to follow me?"

"No, if you don't want me to follow you." I smiled faintly, trying to reassure him that I was actually being honest. "But, if you ever need anything, you can count on me." He could feel the sincerity in my voice, his stiff body relaxed and he nodded his head. "Don't hesitate to reach out for me."

"Steve... Will he try to look for me?" Bucky murmured, eyes glancing at a Captain America memory wall.

"With all his might." I replied.

"Don't let him find me." My eyes narrowed a bit at his request. "That's the only thing I'm asking for."

I hesitated, then sighed. "He probably won't even talk to me once he wakes up." I bit my lip, then chuckled bitterly. "Anyway, I've got your back, Bucky. Always." I slowly reached with my fingers for his flesh hand and pulled him closer to me, but he eventually gave in and let me snake my arms around his shoulders, his lacing behind my back after a short moment. I took in a long breath, inhaling his familiar scent, then reluctantly let him slip out of my embrace, one final look at his beautiful eyes as my fingers skillfully slipped a piece of paper in his pocket. "Stay safe." I said, then turned around on my heels and left the museum, getting inside of my car and drove out of the parking lot, headed towards the hospital. 

 

I was carrying three cups of hot coffee in my hands, stopping in front of the police officer guarding the door of the hospital room and handed him one of the cups, a smile on my face. "Here you go, Sir." He accepted it politely and smiled back, stepping aside to let me inside of the room. I saw Sam smiling at Steve, one song playing in the background. I closed the door behind me, hesitant as I looked over at them. "Hey..." I said, awkwardly standing there in the middle of the room.

"Is that for me?" Sam asked with a surprised expression, almost too surprised, and Steve got the hint that Sam knew that I was coming. I nodded at Sam and handed him his coffee, him quickly standing up to let me sit in his place. "Why, thank you, Viktoria. This is really a kind gesture." He signaled to Steve with an exaggerated nod. "Why don't you two converse while I go out and enjoy my coffee? Well, okay, see you later." Sam quickly left the room, silence between me and Steve.

"How are you feeling?" I asked him softly, hazel eyes looking at him lying down on the bed, his body weak, full of cuts an bruises, his right cheek a bit swollen. He could've died...

Steve looked at the ceiling, a crease on his forehead. "Lied to." He replied. "But mostly betrayed."

I set down on a coffee table the hot cup and stood up from the chair, stepping closer to his bed when he refused to look at me. My hands reached for his right hand, gently closing my fingers around it. "I screwed up..." I breathed out, his eyes sharply turning to me. "And I'm sorry."

"Are you really sorry?" He asked, his full expression changing into one of hurt, voice laced with pained feelings. "Because to me it looks like that you never once had a problem lying with a straight face."

My fingers tightened a bit around his hand, eyes watering at his accusatory tone. "I never once lied to you about my feelings." I whispered. "I'm not asking for your forgiveness... but I want you to know that I hated myself every single damn time for not being honest with you." 

Steve took in a deep breath, his chest rising quickly then lowered slowly as he exhaled. "You knew about Bucky." I nodded. "And you also knew how important he was..." he corrected himself. "Is to me."

"When I joined Hydra I was a different person." I explained to him. "Infiltrate Shield and lie in wait was just another mission for me." Finally, he slipped his hand out of mine, blue irises looking at me in mistrust, but I continued even if I was hurt by his rejection. "I found love, a place to call home and people who became my family. I wasn't going to throw all of that away for world domination." I said the last part almost as a joke. "Bucky..." My voice caught in my throat and I looked up at the ceiling, more tears slipping down my cheeks. I wasn't sure what to say to him. "I shouldn't have lied to you about him, and I'm sorry for what has happened, but words cannot change the past."

"Viktoria-" Steve said, but I refused to look at him, just turned on my heels and headed for the door. "Where are you going?" He tried to push himself up, but groaned as his body ached from the sudden movement.

I stopped in my tracks, fingers hovering above the handle of the door. "I thought I could deal with the consequences of my actions, but I can't." I sobbed, my chest heaving painfully. "I hurt a lot of people, you and Bucky most of everyone... I'm sorry, Steve." I turned the handle and exited the room, his voice calling for me, but I didn't stop. Sam looked at my distressed expression, but I walked past him and he hurried to Steve's room. 

I was in the parking lot of the hospital, just sitting in the car and crying my heart out. My brain had just stopped working, all I knew was that everything was a mess, and I was one of the people who caused it. How could I screw so badly? Suddenly the passenger door opened and I flinched in a startle, soon releasing a shaky breath when I saw Natasha's eyes. I rested my head against the backrest and just stared blankly in front of me. "On a scale from one to ten, how much does everybody hate me?"

Natasha sighed tilting her head, then locked her green irises on me. "Nine point five?" She said, a bit of sarcasm in her tone.

I sneered whilst rolling my eyes. "Let's see... Shield, Hydra, my friends, my now-ex-boyfriend...." I paused, biting my lower lip absentmindedly. "Oh, the Government."

"I don't hate you..." Nat murmured, my puffy eyes turning to look at her while sniffling with the nose. "I get why you played double agent, but I don't know why you didn't ask for help." She said, sounding a bit hurt.

I averted my gaze, looking down at my hands in my lap then, after a long moment, softly shook my head. "I've always done things by myself..." I whispered. "I knew that if I had reached out to someone..." Another pause, I couldn't just find the words to explain how I felt.

"I know, Viktoria," Nat rested her hand on top of mine, squeezing lightly to give me some comfort, "I know how it feels to think that you have to make everything right on your own, to bear the burden and drag it around on your shoulders..." That was exactly the way I felt. I hated the thought of pulling someone down with me. When things have started to get bad, I thought I was the only person I could count on. "But you have me, you have Clint and..." The redhead hesitated, eyes moving to glance at the hospital.

"Not Steve." I breathed out, nodding my head in disappointment. "I just got so close to love, then lost it again." There was a taste of bitterness in my words.

Nat furrowed her brow at that 'again'. "Give him some time, he'll forgive you." 

My hazel eyes turned to her, a faint smile making its way onto my face. How could she be so understanding and kind after what I've done? I reached out with my arms and pulled her in for a hug, relaxing in her familiar touch. "What would I do without you in my life?" I asked rhetorically and she laughed a bit, hands caressing my back.

"Everything will be fine, just trust me, okay?" I pulled back and nodded at her, her fingers brushing away the stray tears from my cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked the new chapter :D Thank you for taking some of your time to read my work ♡


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At first I was like "naaah" but then I gave the two CIA agents random names.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess it's been a week or so since I last posted. I've been trying to write when I got some free time, which seems almost something rare now between school and trying to stay in contact with my friends. I don't know, but I hope my tiredness isn't showing in the characters or altering the way they act (trust me, if I'm in the mood for writing but I'm not feeling 50% myself that thing can happen, and my characters become quite depressed and crappy).
> 
> Anyway, I hope you like this chapter, I didn't proof read it so there might be some errors and stuff.
> 
>  
> 
> Sometimes when I write I listen to some music and some songs seem perfect for certain characters. Should I make a playlist or something? It might actually be cool (:
> 
>  
> 
> Enjoy the new chapter ♡

Things got a bit out of hand when I tried to move back to New York. I found my whole apartment turned upside down, from the wardrobe in the bedroom to the cupboards in the kitchen. Everything was a mess. It didn't take long for someone to ring at the bell on my front door. My head snapped sharply towards the corridor, I was crouching in the kitchen, picking up broken pieces of glass and ceramics. I could hear two unfamiliar heartbeats on the other side of the door, the breath catching up in my throat. The doorbell rang again. I let down the broken pieces quietly and stood up, my right reaching behind my back and the fingers closed around the handle of my gun, ready to pull it out. I cautiously made my way down the corridor and looked through the peephole. I saw two tall and muscular guys, dressed in what appeared to be dark work suits. "Who are you?" I asked without opening the door, grip tightening around the handle of the gun.

"CIA. Agent Forbes and Ryland." Replied one of the man. "Can you open the door, Miss?"

"Why are you here?" I asked once again, still refusing to open the door. It might've as well been a trap.

"We just want to ask you a few questions." The other guy replied.

"What's the reason?" I insisted, hand finally leaving the gun to unlock the door and swing it open. The two men looked at each other for a moment, then their eyes were back on me. "Show me the badge." I said, crossing my arms. Both of them pulled out two black badges and displayed them to me, I slowly reached for one of the badges and took in my hands, the agent letting me and I looked closely and the ID of the person. "Alright." I said, returning the badge to the person. The badges were real, and as someone who's worked in secret agency for years, I know when something is fake.

"Miss Alkaeva, where were you the day of the attack on the Triskelion?" The man that appeared to be a bit older than his partner asked me whilst putting away his badge.

I furrowed my brow whilst crossing my arms again. "I know that you're just trying to do your job, but this is a waste of time."

"Just answer the questions, please." Agent Ryland said.

"Am I under investigation or something?" I insisted. I wasn't gonna play their game. If the CIA was standing in front of my door from the moment I set foot in New York, this meant that something was up.

They didn't answer my question, just stepped closer to me and I stepped back, hand slipping down my sides in alarm. "If you won't answer our questions, then you'll need to come with us."

"So you can lock me up in a black site and force the information you need out of me?" I spat out with a firm voice, "I think not," hazel eyes shifting swiftly between the two men, who suddenly pulled out their guns and pointed them at me.

"Agents, you better put down your weapons before you get sued for offense to personal freedom." A familiar voice said down the hallway, Maria Hill making her way towards them with a man beside her, who had a phone out and was recording the scene. "Which you just did by pointing your guns at Miss Alkaeva." The CIA agents holstered their weapons with discontent, knowing fully well who she worked for. "As an employee of Stark Industries, you can't take her in for questioning.

"This doesn't end here." Agent Forbes pointed one finger at Maria, but she just shrugged him off, then they left.

As soon as the man next to the woman turned off his phone, I turned to look at her in confusion. "Since when do I work for Tony? Don't get me wrong..." I sighed, trying to ease up the tension in my body. "That could've just gone pretty bad."

Maria gave me a serious yet reassuring look. "Everyone has been wondering where you've been for the past three months." She told me, and I shrugged tiredly.

"I've been trying to lay low." I said nonchalant, then looked at the man beside her, probably around his forties. "I guess you're a lawyer." I said, smiling at him.

"What gave me away?" He asked in almost a chuckle.

"You were filming the scene for evidence, which is smart, by the way." I said, nodding my head, then moved my hazel eyes to Maria. She looked good in her new position as Stark's assistant, or whatever she was doing these days. "So, do I come with you..?" I twitched my lips, unsure of what was happening. For the past months, after I last spoke with Nat, I just roamed around the country without a clear destination or purpose. I just needed some time off, but eventually got tired of running and came back. I still had memories in my old apartment and all my pictures with Coulson were there. I just didn't expect people would track me down that quick.

Maria nodded. "You should pack your bags, Stark wants you to move into the Tower for protection." I wanted to say something, tell her that I was feeling a little bit conflicted about that, but I really didn't see other options besides stay in my apartment and wait for someone to try and kidnap me.

"Does..." I started, but then wasn't sure myself either if I wanted to hear the answer to my question. "Does he know what I did?" She nodded once more. "Then it's not about protection, but to keep a close eye on me." I said, rubbing my forehead with my hands in frustration.

"Do you have a problem with that?" Maria asked me, tilting her head to the side. She didn't sound annoyed at all, just tired. I could tell that things had yet to cool down, even three months after Shield's downfall.

"No..." I shook my head in defeat. "How many bags to I need to pack?"

"Everything you think you'll need." She told me. "I can help you if you want?"

"That would be great, thank you."

 

The doors to the elevator opened and my eyes met the back of Tony, his head turning to look at me as his words slowed down and he told one of his employees to keep going with his work. "Well, if it isn't Foxy." The billionaire said, opening his arms as if to welcome me in his humble home.

"In flesh and bones." I replied, stepping out of the elevator, taking small steps towards him.

"Dear God, you look like a lost animal." Tony pointed out sarcastic, brow furrowed as I gave a quick look around his newly renovated top floor.

"I've been through a lot lately, so..." I mumbled, finally setting my pupils on him.

"Yeah, I know." Tony said, arching his brow while pointing one finger at me. "We have one Asgardian who still can't believe what you've done. Two Science-Bros with trust issues." He started pacing back and forth with casual steps. "Two assassins actually have no problem with you having been Hydra..." He suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned to me, dramatically bringing the palms of his hands to rest above his heart. "And we also have a broken-hearted soldier."

I just gazed at him in silence, an uncomfortable expression on my features. "Can you make me feel even worse?" I asked Tony with a heavy sigh, shaking my head then looked at the floor, unable to keep eye contact with him.

"Yes." He deadpanned. "Your room is directly in front of Cap's."

My eyes shot open and I looked up at him in shock. "He's here?" I whispered, suddenly feeling nervous knowing that Steve was in the Tower too. "I know you consider yourself a genius, but this is way beyond my expectations." I said, a slight change in my voice from awkwardly uncomfortable to anger.

"Where'd you think he'd go after your little play?" Tony asked me. He was seriously acting up, but I could understand the emotions he was going through. Having one team member who you could hardly trust was terrible. "Do you know why I sent Hill to get you?" I glanced at him, but didn't answer. "Because you're an Avenger, first of all, and you still have people who care about you."

I nodded slowly, hazel eyes starting to water up, but I refused to cry. "Thank you..." I replied, voice low but full of sincerity.

"Go and rest. I've got some work for you for tomorrow." Tony said, stepping closer to me, hands reaching up to squeeze my upper arms for some apparent comfort.

 

It had been a few days since I've secluded myself into my tiny apartment. It was comfortable, sure, but I just didn't want to interact with anyone. Jarvis would sometimes ask me how I was, and I'd always give the same answer. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Miss Alkaeva," Jarvis spoke to me that late afternoon, "The gym is free if you want to train." The British voice said, making me blink a few times as I paused my stretching on the floor of the living room.

"I don't want to sound rude..." I started, laying my back on the floor while thinking. "But I'm not in the mood to see anyone... Or talk to anyone."

"It's Saturday. Currently, there's no one on the private floors of the Tower." Jarvis informed me.

I thought about it for a moment. Might as well leave my room for a workout session in the gym, which kinda surprised me that there's a gym moreover. "Alright, buddy," I stood up from the floor, heading for the front door; there was no need for me to put on workout clothes since I was already dressed in a tank top and a pair of leggings, "lead the way."

A few floors below the private apartments, there was an entire place dedicated to different types of training, each in separate rooms equipped with the needed materials. I stopped in front of a door where the writing on the wall said 'Shooting Ground' and bit my lower lip, then walked through the door and found myself in an enormous room. Strangely, there were no targets at the end of the room, but behind me on a wall, was a vast choice of equipment, from throwing knifes to gun. One item caught my attention, making me smile a little. I slowly moved my hand to take a hold of a black bow and closed my fingers around the cold material, then grabbed a quiver full of arrows and put it on my back, turning around to look at the empty space.

A holographic panel appeared in front of me, customizable options for the training session. I scrolled through the list and, at the bottom, I clicked a button to set it on random. I took in a deep breath and pulled out one arrow from the quiver, getting myself in position to shoot. A countdown displayed starting from five, and as soon as it reached zero, I exhaled the breath that I've been holding in. I nocked the arrow, pulled the bowstring back and pointed the sharp tip of the weapon towards the bottom of the room, when suddenly small round flying objects appeared from the walls and ceiling, shifting at high speed across the perimeter. A small smirk made its way on my lips whilst thinking about Clint, who I hadn't seen in almost a year.

"Well then, let's see if I'm still good with this..." I quickly scanned the flying patterns of the objects and my smirk faded, concentration filling my features. I released the first arrow and the weapon hit one of the targets, the rest abruptly started shifting through the room. I swiftly drew another arrow and loaded it, pulling the bowstring back until it was close to my right side of the face. The targets moved frantically from one side of the room to the other, making me feel already irritated. Archery just wasn't my thing, you either have strong nerves and a good pair of eyes, or you just give up and use guns. I missed the second shot, the point of the arrow getting stuck in the wall behind the objects.

I lowered the bow and let out a heavy sigh, eyes gazing across the room. "Come on, I know you can do better than that." A voice said, starling me. I turned my head to look at the person and saw Clint leaning his shoulder against the doorframe, a smile on his face with sunglasses shielding his eyes.

"Oh, shut up!" I remarked with a wide grin on my face, walking up to him to give him a tight hug. "You're here, I can't believe you're here!" I murmured happily against his shoulder. Clint held me tightly in his arms, then let me go. "Where have you been all this time?" I asked him, a slight note of concern in my voice.

He took off his shades and hung them on the collar of his sweater, shrugging a little. "I've been on a mission, then got hurt and went on a vacation."

I gave him a playful punch in the shoulder and shoot my head at him, still smiling. "I missed you, and you could've at least called or sent a text."

He nodded, blue irises gazing at my hazel ones. "Yeah, I'm sorry I wasn't there when you guys needed it." I bit my lower lip and he understood right away what was going on inside of my head, so he pulled me in for another hug. "How you holdin' up?" He asked me in a low voice.

I shook my head softly, the pulled away from him, eyes avoiding to look at him. I drew another arrow from the quiver and positioned myself on the previous spot, drawing the bowstring back and shot the arrow at another target, this time hitting it, its body falling on the ground. "I keep saying that I'm doing fine..." I shot another arrow, striking down one more target. "But I'm not fine." My eyes were feeling dry, I could not cry anymore, there were no more tears left. "My whole life was built on lies and now there's nothing real." The last part was full of venom. I could not stand the fact that I was feeling so weak and powerless.

"Don't be so harsh on yourself." Said Clint, standing beside me. He was holding another bow, arrow between his fingers ready to be released. "Tasha told me what happened." He shot the first arrow and took down one object without too much effort. "Do you plan on hiding in your room and just ignore the world?" I stopped myself before shooting the next arrow and lowered the bow, looking at Clint. The breath caught in my throat when I tried to reply, but no sound came out. "Viktoria," Clint took down the last flying object, then looked at me, "you're one of the strongest people I know, and I'm not just talking about those crazy powers you never use." His right hand rested on top of my left shoulder. "Whatever is going through your head, I won't let it tear you apart, okay? We're family."

I took in a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling, a chuckle slipping past my lips. "Thank you for not giving up on me."

"Now we just gotta work on your relationship with Cap." He said with a smile, but mine faded quickly, eyes wide in shock and pupils fixed on my best friend.

"No, no, no!" I gently shook off his hand from my shoulder and turned back to the wall behind us to put away the bow and quiver in a rush. "Steve doesn't need me back in his life."

"You need him in your life." Clint pointed out, he too putting away his equipment. "Don't try to hide the fact that you still love him."

I sighed out whilst slapping my hands against my sides in an annoyed manner. "Clint, I can't just keep on hoping that he'll forgive me for what I did!" My behavior changed quickly from calm to a freaked out animal. "Even if he does, he won't..." I trailed off, eyes staring blankly at the floor. "Let's just not do anything about it, okay?" I asked him and Clint nodded in defeat after a long moment.

"So... Wanna watch a movie?" Clint asked me, lacing his right arm around my left one and guided me towards the exit. "I've heard that the new Hunger Games has just come out."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to write something but then forgot what that was.
> 
> Anyway, Clint is back, yay!
> 
> About the Hunger Games reference, there's a one shot I wrote some time ago about the Reader introducing Clint to the Hunger Games series, so if you're interested, here's the link for the story: [Katniss or Legolas, that is the question](http://archiveofourown.org/works/4582872). It may not be written very well, but I hope you like the small plot.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Viktoria got a desk job, which isn't really great, but not that bad either. Oh, everyone loves puppies and Tony uses hashtags when he writes texts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should be studying, but meh. I'm just gonna post this then I'm off to a relaxing bath, and _then_ I'll study. Gosh don't you hate the student's life? My nerves are on the edge, but I keep reminding myself that there's less than two months left till the final exams, then I'll be finally free. (hopefully I'll pass with a 70/100 score, I'm not really aiming for the 75-80/100, there's not way I can get that high without frying my brain.)

I didn't know how, but Tony had managed to salvage most of Shield's, even Hydra's, secret files after they had been uploaded on the Internet by Natasha. I was sitting in a large office with other staff members just scanning through the documents assigned to my workstation, making sure that they hadn't been compromised. My access to the network was restricted because Stark didn't trust me, yet I worked my ass off to try and retrieve other important files from the Internet, then uploaded all kinds of viruses to track down even more documents then save them and destroy the rest of the copies. It was a frustrating desk job, but the other staff members always tried to keep their cool even when hackers tried to counterattack. No field jobs for me. It didn't really bother me, but my whole body felt stiff and numb after countless hours of sitting in front of a computer screen, fingers typing frantically on the keyboard. I was loosing my sanity, or so I thought.

I had yet to run into Steve, even if our apartments were across each other's, I hadn't seen nor heard him. I sighed heavily as someone tried to hack into my network for the hundredth time that day. "Oh, not again you bastard..." I snorted in annoyance, a few eyes glancing at me from their workstations whilst I sat up straight on the chair and begun counterattacking. Years of training in different tech and electronics made me actually feel quite proud of myself. Just because I was born way before technology it didn't mean that I shouldn't have knowledge about it.

I sighed in relief when I had finally neutralized the attack, eyes glancing at the time on the bottom of the screen. "Oh my, you're actually useful." Stark's voice made me turn my head sharply at him, eyes narrowing at his stupid grin. It was rare for him to visit around the various workstations throughout the Tower, but there he stood behind me.

"Oh look, the Mighty Genius has descended to see how Hell's doing." I said with my eyebrows arched, typing a few things into the computer. "Well, Hell's doing fine."

The other employees exchanged weird looks, not really knowing what was going on, but they sure knew who I was. Stark chuckled, shades sliding down his nose as he tilted his head at me. "Right, but if this had really been Hell, I should had seen you sitting on a throne."

I gasped. That went way beyond our usual bickering. If he wanted to make me angry, his plan was doing great. "Are you jealous because I can sit on a throne in flames?" I spat back, switching off my computer and stood up from my chair, giving him a death glare.

Tony pointed one finger at me as he was about to say something, but the breath caught in his throat with his mouth slightly opened, then closed it. "That was a low-blow." He said, fixing his shades on his nose. "I treated you with Shawarma. Why don't you show me some gratitude?"

I rolled my eyes at him, then headed for the door, ignoring the eyes that were gazing at us, Stark following right behind. "Tony, please... Can't you see that I'm really trying to be a good person by not taking you for a punching bag?" I asked him, feeling exasperated that this thing between us had been going on for over a month now.

"I'm sorry, Foxy, but pissing you off is something that comes natural whenever you're around." Tony said as we finally took the elevator for the upper floors of the Tower. "It's like breathing."

I chuckled whilst shaking my head. "Somewhere out there is a tree, tirelessly producing oxygen so you can breathe. You're a waste of oxygen." I looked him straight in the eyes, face going expressionless as he stared back at me with furrowed brow.

"Okay, that was actually mean." Tony said. "Do you always speak with the intent of hurting me?" The doors to the elevator slid open and Tony walked out, heading for the new bar on the top floor of the Tower, he then poured himself a glass of whiskey. 

I followed him, sitting down at the counter, elbows resting on the cold surface. "Only when you're around..." He placed in front of me his glass then poured another one for him. "It's like breathing." I emptied the content of the glass in one gulp, the dark liquid burning my throat immediately, then the sensation disappeared quickly.

"It seems you're a waste of oxygen too." Tony said, gulping down the contents of his glass the same way that I did.

"Aren't we all a wast of oxygen?" I reached for the bottle of whiskey and poured more into my glass, then filled his too before setting down the bottle. "Except for puppies. Puppies deserve the world." I took another long gulp then set down the glass with a heavy sigh, the liquid burning my throat once again.

"Why are you bringing up puppies into this conversation?" Tony asked, tilting his head at me before taking a small sip from his glass.

"I don't know..." I murmured, laying tiredly my forehead on the counter. "Puppies make me happy."

A ding came from the direction of the elevator and I slightly moved my eyes to see who was coming, then lift up when I saw Maria walk into the room with Sam Wilson. Gosh, I hadn't seen that guy in months. He smiled at me and waved. "Viktoria!" He walked up to me and Tony and sat down beside me on a stool. "Stark. How are you doing?" He asked me, that same smile on his features.

I smiled back and leaned my chin on the palm of my hand, right elbow on the counter. "Everything's fine, in fact, we were just talking about puppies." I glanced at Tony, but he shrugged.

"She brought puppies into the conversation." The billionaire replied.

"If you're done talking about puppies, Boss, here's the mission report." Maria said with an exhausted expression. It was pretty late, but she was still working.

I narrowed my eyes at the sound of that and glanced back at Sam. "Have you been on a mission?" I asked him.

Sam nodded, gladly accepting a glass of whiskey from Tony, then took a sip of the burning liquid making a contorted expression. "Steve and I raided a Hydra base. They were trying to sell their weapons to a super secret auction of evilness."

I giggled, all eyes turning to look at me. "I'm sorry, it's just the way you said it." I reached for the bottle of whiskey but Tony moved it away from me, and I gave him a questioning look. "Seriously? You know I can't get drunk, right?" The man narrowed his eyes at me but then removed the cap from the bottle and poured some more liquid into my glass. "Thank you."

"Well, if there's nothing else you need, I'll take my leave." Maria said to Stark, eyes silently sending daggers his way hoping he would not give her a last minute task.

"Nah, go home, Hill." He said, and she sighed in relief, then said goodbye and left the room. "Where's Capsicle?" Stark asked Sam.

My heart skipped a beat at Tony mentioning him, but I casually looked over at Sam, trying not to look too interested in his answer. "He's back in his apartment. I asked him to go out for a drink, but he was too tired."

"Now that's strange." Said Tony, twitching his lips as if thinking about something. The billionaire's phone beeped and he took it out of his pocket to see the next, then cursed under his breath. "Gotta go. While I'm gone, try not to drink the rest of the bar." Tony pointed one finger at me, then left.

"Oh, God..." I murmured annoyed, then gulped down the whiskey and poured once more the liquid in my glass. "The only fun I get _is_ drinking."

Sam chuckled, brow furrowed. "Did he confine you in here?"

"Didn't you know?" I asked the man, chuckling bitterly after taking a slow sip of the whiskey. "I'm stuck on a desk job, counting Saturdays and Sundays. I believe the correct term is slavery."

"What?!" Sam exclaimed. "Why don't you hang out tomorrow with me and Steve?" Sam emptied his glass and set it down on the counter getting ready to leave.

I shook my head firmly. "Not gonna happen. Thanks for the offer, though." The sole thought of seeing Steve made my insides clench. There was a fear in the back of my mind that he hated me, and I just couldn't stand the thought of being in close proximity to him, the fact that Steve's apartment was right in front of mine didn't help either.

"You can't avoid each other like the plague forever." Sam said, seriousness laced in his voice. "You have to talk to each other and make amends." I tried to say something, but he continued after a short pause. "I can see it clearly, the way he acts when someone says your name, like he doesn't care, but I know he does." That made me think. I know I caused him a lot of pain, but if he was still suffering for what I did, I couldn't keep on ignoring it anymore. "I'm off now. I hope you'll think about it."

"Thank you, Sam. Bye." I gave him a sad smile and he patted me lightly on the back. After he was gone, I finished the whole bottle of whiskey and threw it in a trash can behind the counter, then went for the elevator and down to my apartment. I had just swiped my keycard in the panel next to the door of my apartment when I heard the door behind me unlocking, and my head turned automatically at the sound. "Hi." I said after a moment of hesitation, sounding quite shy. Steve saw me and his eyes widened for a brief moment, then he averted his gaze and closed the door behind him while looking down. I noticed that he was wearing the black leather jacket I had given him for his birthday last year. "Are you going out?" I asked him, closing my fingers tightly around the keycard.

"Isn't it obvious?" He replied, a note of disdain in his voice.

I knew I shouldn't put too much thought into it, but it still hurt the way he replied. "Alright..." I murmured, and he turned to look at me, those blue irises making me feel as if I was about to melt on the floor. "I'm here, if you want to talk..." I said softly.

Steve sighed, then shook his head, starting to leave. "There's nothing to talk about."

My brow furrowed at his back, and suddenly I felt a strong urge to raise my voice. "There is, Steve." He stopped in his tracks and looked back at me. "I can live with the fact that you can't even stand the sight of me, but I won't ignore the fact that you're still hurting." I sighed heavily, shaking my head at the situation. He didn't say anything, just turned around and left. I got inside of my apartment and closed the door behind me, my back pressing against the flat surface and slit down slowly. I sat there for a long time, knees close to my chest as I stared blankly in front of me, darkness in the living room, faint lights of the city coming through the tall windows. "I still love you..." I murmured, thinking about him.

My phone started buzzing in the pocket of my jacket and I pulled it out, seeing that the caller was unknown. I squinted my eyelids at the screen, then decided to answer anyway. "Hello?"

There was a long silence on the other side of the line, faint sound of slow breathing. _"It's me."_ The male voice whispered.

My eyes widened and I shot up on my feet, running towards the bathroom, where Jarvis could not reach me. I knew Tony asked his AI to keep his ears open, and I was glad that the bathroom was off limits. I sat of the lowered toilet lid and pressed the phone to my ear, speaking softly. "Are you okay?" I asked Bucky. It was the first time he was calling since we separated.

He exhaled almost imperceptibly, a small groan escaping his lips. _"I am. I just wanted to hear you."_ I wasn't really hopeful, but deep down I believed Bucky would keep the note and contact me someday.

I smiled at myself, feeling better now that I've heard him. "Thank you for letting me know you're okay." There was a pause, he didn't say anything. "I won't ask where-"

 _"I'm not in America."_ Bucky interrupted me. _"Don't worry about me. I gotta go now."_

"Okay... Take care." He hung up and it took me a long moment to finally put down my phone, then just stared at the black screen on my lap.

The screen turned on after the phone buzzed and I saw a text from Stark. _By the way, I forgot to tell you there's a party next week. You're invited, but not because I like you. Go do some shopping, buy something pretty to make the men swoon, not me though. I don't like you. #AvengersReunion_

"Seriously?" I giggled whilst shaking my head at the hashtag. _Are you sure I can leave the Tower without having someone to keep an eye out on me?_ I typed and added a laughing emoji with the tears at the end, before sending it to him.

 _It's not like I've chained you to the Tower or put a dog chip on you._ Tony replied quickly, the emoji that winks and blows a kiss with a red heart at the bottom of the text.

 _Sure... That makes me feel better now._ I texted back, then scrolled through the contacts in my phone and called Nat. If Tony was throwing a party, I needed something new to wear and a good adviser for a pretty dress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter which I hope you liked. Please, tell me what you think :D I've got a rough week coming so I'm afraid there won't be a new chapter coming soon, maybe next weekend, who knows.
> 
>  
> 
> Have a great day/week lovelies. ♡


	12. Steve's POV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is from Steve's point of view. I thought I should include his doubts, see how he's dealing with Viktoria living across from his apartment.
> 
> The parts _written in italics are memories_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeellllllooooo from yours truly! :D Since I did pretty well on my exam simulations, I decided to finish chapter 12 last night and post it this morning! It's a bit longer than this one, and I hope you like the way I portrayed Steve (hopefully he doesn't look too out of character).
> 
>  
> 
> This work was supposed to be only 10 chapters long, but I don't feel like ending it yet... *monkey emoji that covers his eyes* I dunno, we shall see what happens next, I might add more chapters instead of finishing the story at 15 and start a new one.
> 
>  
> 
> By the way, do you guys know who Glenn Talbot is? He was a character on AoS, and the picture of Item 084 is from Episode 01, Season 2 of Agents of Shield ( yeah, back at it with the AoS references lol). If Viktoria has gone to check on this strange object, do you know what this could possibly mean? *smug grin emoji*
> 
>  
> 
> Enough with my talking, enjoy the chapter and tell me what did you think of it ^_^ Leave a kudo to support the work ♡

_"I still love you..."_ Those words kept on replaying in my head over and over again. Why did I have to turn around and walk back to her door? I kept on tossing and turning under the bedsheets, but no position seemed comfortable enough to finally fall asleep. Every spot on the mattress felt like needles poking into my body. Why did she have to say it? With a tired sigh, I reached for the lamp on the bedside table and switched on the lightbulb, eyes staring at the ceiling. Viktoria's hurt expression was burned in my mind and the way I acted made me feel bad, even guilty if I wanted to be honest with myself.

I rubbed my eyes with my fingers and sat up on the mattress, adjusting the soft pillow against the headboard to lean my back on it. After getting comfortable, I opened a drawer of the nightstand and pulled out one of my sketchbooks, flipping the pages slowly and just looked at the drawings.

_"What are you doing?" Viktoria giggled as she noticed me glancing from time to time at her while running the tip of the pencil on the blank paper._

_I smiled at her, then lowered my eyes on the paper once again. "Just stay still, will you?" I asked her and she giggled once more._

_"Aye, Captain." Viktoria murmured, closing her hazel eyes and leaned down her head on her forearms. She was lying in bed on her belly, bedsheets covering her bottom half while the back was exposed, skin illuminated by the morning light filtering through the curtains._

I just gazed at the drawing, she looked as if she was asleep. There were more drawings of her in the sketchbook, hands holding a cup off coffee close to her lips as she was looking off in the distance, one sketch of her hair tied up in a messy bun... My fingers closed a bit tighter at the sides of the sketchbook, then released the pressure. No matter how much I tried not to think about her, she always found a way back into my thoughts. One last look at some more pages and I put back the sketchbook inside the drawer, turning off the light on the nightstand. _"I still love you..."_

 

I woke up in the morning, eyes squinting a few times whilst adjusting to the bright light inside of the room. I turned my head to the bedside table and looked at the time on the digital clock, deciding to get out of bed, have some breakfast and head down to the gym. When I got out of my apartment, I stopped to look at Viktoria's door. Hesitant, I stepped closer and raised my hand, knuckles ready to knock, but stopped myself. "She must be working..." I thought, then headed directly for the gym.

I walked by a training room, halting my steps when I heard some loud music from behind a door. There was nothing written next to the door to say what was inside, and when I unlocked the door from a digital panel, it slid open and the rock music became louder. An abrupt crash of an object against the wall next to me made me tense up in alert, eyes quickly turning to look at the person fighting a few robots in human shape. 

It was Viktoria. Her hair had been tied up in a tight ponytail, she had a tight black shirt on with a pair of leggings hugging her long legs, grey trainers on her feet. One of the robots charged towards her and she jumped high in the air, hands grabbing the robot by its head as her body rotated until her feet touched the ground behind the machine, its body falling down on the ground with a loud crash, headless.

She didn't seem tired even though I could see lots of broken robots on the ground, metal all around the enormous room. Only two were left. Victoria's hands lit up in a blue light, knees bending just a little as the remaining machines attacked her, her hands sliced through the metal easily and the robots fell on the ground lifeless. As she stopped to catch her breath, she looked back and saw me standing there by the door, a slight crease between my brows. The music that was blaring in the background stopped playing immediately.

"Hey," she said whilst stretching out her arms, corners of her lips slightly curved up, "wanna try?" She asked me, pointing at my training outfit. "It's better than hitting humans." She chuckled, stepping closer to me from the middle of the room, then bent down and grabbed a bottle of water from inside of her bag and drank half of the content.

I just stood there without knowing what to say, and for some reasons my tongue happened to be faster than my brain. "I prefer humans, more unpredictable."

The brunette furrowed her brow, then put the cap back on the bottle. "Do you need a partner?" She asked me, and I tilted my head. "I mean, it's been a while since we last sparred." Her hazel eyes looked brighter for some reason, or maybe it was my imagination.

I crossed my arms over my chest and shook my head. "I don't know, seems like you were having fun by yourself."

Viktoria giggled whilst shaking her head. That familiar sound made my heart clench, but it was a warm feeling. "Actually, I asked Stark to rethink my position as an employee and he decided to use me as a beta tester for his droids." She explained, a note of sarcasm in her voice. "Said the job was exclusive."

I let out a soft chuckle, her expression changed into one of a delighted surprise. "What?" I furrowed my brow, still smiling.

"I haven't seen you smile in a while..." Viktoria murmured, looking down at the bottle that she was still holding, then her hazel eyes glanced back up at me from under her long lashes. "It's nice." There was a long silence between us and she seemed to hesitate, but spoke out again. "So, wanna let out your frustrations on me?" She asked. "You look like you could use a super-human punching bag."

I thought about it for a moment. If this was her way of trying to ease up things between us, it might actually help me clear up some thoughts that were bugging me. "On one condition," I said, and she gave a single nod, her expression serious, "don't hold yourself back." Viktoria blinked her eyes a few times then nodded again, picking up her bag and followed me to another training room. 

We stepped in the middle of the training room, bare feet on a soft mat, she quickly positioned her body in a fighting stance with her feet a bit distant from each other, knees slightly bent and arms ready to shun any attack. I took in a deep breath, then locked my eyes on hers, launching myself at her but Viktoria dodged quickly the first few blows, trying to deliver some of her own in the meantime, but unsuccessful. I managed to knock her off her feet and she hit the mat with a loud thud, her back pressed against the soft material.

"You tired yet?" I asked her with some irony when I didn't see her try and stand up. 

She gave me a narrowed look and jumped back on her feet, hazel irises fixed on blue ones. There it was, the look on her face that made my insides burn in annoyance, the one that seemed to say that she was in control, every step she took screamed how confident she was. Fighting against her in a hand-to-hand combat wasn't like training with Natasha, Viktoria seemed to bring up a darker side from deep within me, and it bothered me.

No matter how much we pushed and pulled, neither of us was going to give in to the other, punches and kicks weren't enough to bring us down. She dodged another one of my punches and swiftly took a hold of my wrist, trying to bent it outward to make me lose balance, but I hit her harshly in the belly and knocked out the air from her lungs, a loud gasp coming out of her mouth as she tried to regain her breath. All it took was one blink of an eye and she threw me down on my back, but in the process my fingers closed around the fabric of her shirt and I pulled her down with me, quickly rolling over to pin her body against the mat.

"Now this feels quite familiar..." Viktoria breathed out and looked straight into my pupils. Our legs were tangled whilst I was holding down her wrists against the mat, above her head, the weight of my body pressed on top of hers. I couldn't more away my eyes from hers, the previous annoyance forgotten all at once. I could feel her warm breath for her mouth was only a few inches away from my face, chest heaving under mine.

If it hadn't been for Jarvis interrupting us, a few more seconds and I would've given in to the urge to lower my lips of hers. "Miss Alkaeva." She seemed to be startled for a moment before replying to the AI, hazel eyes glancing at me, silently asking me to get off of her, but I didn't budge. "Mr. Stark has requested your presence for something important. Captain Rogers too." Begrudgingly, I stood up and pulled her up with me. Viktoria gave me a short glance and hurried to put back on her shoes, while I took my time as she picked up her bag, then we both headed for the top floor, where Tony was waiting for us.

The ride in the elevator went pretty silent, Viktoria's eyes trying to avoid mine as much as I tried to avoid hers. I didn't know why, but my heart was still beating fast in my chest. Did I still have feelings for her? "Stark." The brunette said as soon as she got out of the elevator and saw the billionaire sitting on a white sofa. He pointed at the television in the living room and I looked at the news channel, two men conversing live about Shield and Hydra. "I hate that guy..." Viktoria whispered to herself after a heavy sigh, then sat down on the sofa opposite to Tony. I just stood there on my feet, arms crossed over my chest as I listened to the general of the U.S. Air Force, Glenn Talbot, who was vilifying Shield.

"Do you recognize this?" Tony drew me out of my thoughts, holding out a picture of some kind of box, on top of which was written 'S.S.R. Item 084'. 

I squinted my eyes at the picture, but nothing came to my mind. "Never seen it before."

Viktoria reached out with her hand and took the picture, examining the strange box. "How'd you get this?" She asked him, her brow furrowed.

"One of my guys said ex-Shield agents are selling classified intel about high level tech." Stark explained, eyes glancing from her to the television, Talbot still talking.

"This isn't just high level tech," Viktoria replied, voice a bit louder and laced with concern. "When the S.S.R. arrested most of Hydra's members, they also brought back to America hundreds of classified objects, weapons... Anything they thought was dangerous."

I furrowed my brow at her, not really daring to make assumptions, but there was one thing that still bothered me since Hydra had came out from the shadows: how did Viktoria know about all that old information of what had happened in the past? It just wasn't adding up to what I thought I knew about her.

 

_"The Arctic Fox..." Said Natasha with a tired expression on her face. "Again, I thought it was another ghost story."_

_"But you've seen her." Pointed out Fury, groaning lightly as his wounds still ached. "Now, I don't know if Alkaeva followed the ghost story, but maybe, just maybe..." The man paused, looking up at me. "Hydra might have done the same thing to her as they did with your friend."_

 

No, that wasn't possible... at least I didn't think it was. "Cap." I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't hear Stark call out for me a few times. "Capsicle!" He said a bit louder. "Did your brain freeze again?"

I looked at Stark and tilted my head to the side, giving him an annoyed expression. "We don't know for sure if someone is selling out information or has these weapons for real." I said, glancing at the picture that Viktoria was still holding in her hands. "They could be just trying to make some money with false intel."

"Yeah, but still..." Viktoria murmured whilst leaning her back on the backrest of the sofa. "I should go and check it out. Who knows how many of these" she pointed at the box in the picture, "were stolen."

"That's why I called." Tony pointed out. For some reason he appeared to be very serious about this matter, something unusual knowing his character. "You can find all the details in your phone already. Tell Jarvis when you're ready to go."

"Hold on," I said without second thought, taking the picture from Viktoria's hands and she gave me a questioning look. "Are you sending her on a mission? This isn't Shield and she's not an Agent anymore." They could feel the slight venom in my voice, and Viktoria's mouth fell slightly agape.

"Technically, Foxy works for me." Stark replied with a nonchalant shrug.

Viktoria stood up from the couch and gave me a soft pat on the back. "Don't worry, Steve." My blue irises fixed on her hazel ones. I wasn't okay with this, but the reassuring smile on her lips made my tense muscles ease up under her touch. "I might not be an Agent of Shield anymore, but I'm still an Avenger, so..." She shrugged, that same smile on her features. "I'll be careful." She nodded at Tony, picked up her bag and then headed for the elevator, leaving us alone.

"You two seem to be getting along kinda well, which is, might I say, strange..." Stark noted with a smug grin. Just when I thought he could stay serious for more than five minutes...

"Who is getting along with who?" A voice made us look towards the way that Viktoria left, seeing Barton and Romanoff walk into the room.

"Natasha, Clint." I greeted them, trying not to sound too nervous, but the redhead caught on my thoughts.

She grinned at me and then glanced over at Stark. "Why did you send Viktoria undercover?" Her smile faltered, leaving place to a slight concern and suspicion. 

Tony stood up from the sofa and switched off the television. "She volunteered."

"Volunteered?" Clint chuckled, getting himself comfortable on the sofa where Viktoria had sat previously. "You've been torturing her with different jobs for months. Aren't you overdoing it a bit?" 

Tony sighed dramatically with a roll of his eyes. "I'm keeping her occupied, okay? She's not exactly 'trustable'." The billionaire said the last word while mimicking some quotation marks with his fingers.

Nat sat down beside Clint, crossing her arms over her chest and tilted her head, sending a death glare at Stark. "Listen, I've already told you that you can't blame her for what has happened." Her green irises moved on me for a brief second, then were back on Tony. "She's trying really hard to make up for it, but you keep reminding her of her mistakes."

"Someone has to!" Stark almost yelled back at the woman. "That way she won't do it again, hopefully."

My insides clenched painfully at his words. As much as I hated to admit it, she didn't deserve all that hate. "That's enough." I said without second thought, all heads turning my way. "Viktoria didn't betray us." I said, a strong firmness in my voice. "She betrayed Hydra for us. Even if I hate to admit it because she was lying the whole time, I can't ignore the fact that she chose to protect us despite being with the enemy from the start." Stark fell silent, he didn't want to reply, or maybe he had nothing good to say. "She's still part of the team, so try and act more like a friend next time." I finished, then gave a short look at Natasha and Clint before leaving the room in a hurry.

 

I was just staring at the dark brown bottle of beer in front of me, a rare thought crossing my mind, wishing I could get drunk sometimes, but it wasn't an option, was it? "Hm?" I glanced at Sam who was sitting beside me at the bar, after he called for my attention.

"Man, you've spaced out for quite a minute there." He pointed out with a curious smirk on his lips, then took a sip of his beer. "Something troubling you?"

I raised my brows, shrugging a little at his question. "Sorry... I was just thinking about getting a place in Brooklyn." I told him, deflecting his question.

"What, really?" Sam chuckled, giving me a suspicious glare. "And it has nothing to do with Viktoria living two feet across from you?" 

I shook my head, mostly at myself than at Sam's insinuation. Sometimes I hated the fact that people could easily see through me. I sighed in defeat. "Is it that obvious?" I asked him with an apologetic tone. "I'm not one to share my problems very often, but..." I trailed off, averting my eyes from his and looked down at the bottle between my hands. "Do you think I can forgive her?" I asked him after a long pause.

Sam patted me lightly on the shoulder, then squeezed a little to give me some comfort. "Wish I could give you an answer, but it all depends on how you feel." He replied honestly. "Maybe you think that not knowing what's hidden in her past won't make you forgive her, but what if you let the past stay in the past?"

I furrowed my brow and looked at him, fingers closing tightly around the bottle of beer, almost absentmindedly. "Why do you say that?" I asked him, not really understanding what he meant by that.

Sam took his time to think it through, but he seemed really serious and convinced about his answer. "Some people can change, right? She said it herself, that she found a family, people she loves. Man, if love can give you hope to get through life, no matter what hardships you may encounter along the way, then you won't let your past define who you are today." 

I gasped imperceptibly, finally able to see the matter from a new perspective. After a brief moment, I smiled softly, glancing down at the beer as the grip around the bottle eased up. "Maybe you're right..."

Sam nodded, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips too. "Yeah, maybe." He repeated the word, a subtle note of hope in his voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gif links:
> 
> [one](http://gifhunterress.tumblr.com/post/115698213373/steve-rogers-captain-america-gif-hunt-125), [two](http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/alex-and-sean/images/29831473/title/alex-sean-fanart), [three](https://it.pinterest.com/pin/338895940683567893/), [four](http://gifhunterress.tumblr.com/post/115698213373/steve-rogers-captain-america-gif-hunt-125)
> 
> I kinda missed including gifs, so here are some ^_^


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mah guurl if this chapter ain't long. There's some swearing, I dunno if it's worth mentioning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not that sure about this chapter, parts of this were scattered in multiple drafts, just laying around and I didn't know what else to write. Does it give you impression of being kinda off? Idk, hopefully not. Need a honest opinion, I might edit it someday
> 
> Finally, next chapter #AvengersReunion

Heavy rain was falling from the sky, dark clouds covering the city of Alexandria, Virginia. I checked again the location on my phone, then glanced up at a shady looking building. If Tony's informant was correct, the deal should've been there and, as a spy, I would've chosen a place even more secluded than this one. Suddenly, I heard guns firing from inside of the building and, a few seconds later, a loud crash of a window breaking coming from around the corner. I didn't take any abrupt decisions and stayed right where I was, under my umbrella, listening for any other sounds. After the crash, I heard the shards of glass hit the ground along with something heavier, maybe a body, then some fast footsteps turned into a run. 

A tall bald guy appeared from around the corner, running fast while holding something in his hands. I furrowed my brow when I realized that the thing was a Shield classified document. I let the umbrella slip out of my right hand and bent on my knees a little, ready to stop the man from running away. He gave me a weird look, then smirked almost too confident before charging towards me with full strength. I put up my arms and blocked his attacks, not realizing sooner that he was way faster than any average person. The bald guy managed to hit me with a strong punch and sent me flying against a nearby wall, hitting my head harshly. By the time my head stopped aching, I blinked open my hazel eyes and looked around, but the guys was nowhere to be seen. "Well, fuck..." I murmured, a groan escaping my lips as I stood up from the wet ground. I picked up the discarded umbrella and closed it, there was no point in keeping it open now that I was drenched from the rain. I listened carefully if I could pick any other sounds beside the rain and heard some faint voices coming from inside of the building, so I decided to leave. I wasn't gonna risk my cover for checking out the inside, also, sirens resounded not far from where I was, signaling that someone had called the police.

After walking down the street I spotted an Internet Café and walked in, heading towards one specific computer in a secluded corner of the shop, where a teenage boy was probably watching porn on mute. "Do you mind if I use this computer?" I asked the guy, he just glanced at me, seeing droplets of rain falling onto the ground from my hair.

He arched his brows and nodded to a no particular direction. "There a many other computers you can use." His eyes lowered to the screen, his face expressionless.

My left brow arched at him, so I leaned closer, my voice barely above a whisper. "I won't tell the owner that you're watching porn on a public computer... And, I'll give you twenty bucks so you can treat yourself with any pleasure magazine you can buy." The teenager's eyes widened in shock, looking behind me to see the owner of the cafe giving him a suspicious look. "Deal?" I asked him with a satisfied smirk and he nodded, quickly standing up from the desk and took the money that I was holding in my right hand. I took off my coat and hung it on the back of the chair, sitting at the desk. "He could've at least closed the tab..." I murmured, exiting the porn website and started typing various codes into a new browser, securing the search.

"Hi, what can I get you?" A waiter asked me, tired voice.

I didn't move my eyes from the screen because I wasn't in the mood to be polite, so just told him my order. "Latte, extra sugar, large." The waiter scoffed whilst writing down on a notepad and my hazel irises shot up, fingers stopped typing abruptly. "Devon," I read the name tag on his shirt, "you have your entire life to be a jerk. Why not take today off?"

"Latte, extra sugar, large. Coming right away." The guy replied, voice still tired.

I went back on typing on the computer. If the bald guy I encountered in the alley was Hydra, someone must have been sending him orders through a background system of communication that had been hidden in Shield's lines. I hoped that it was still up and being used. The waiter returned after a short moment and served me my order, a receipt next to the cup of coffee. "Keep the change." I paid him and returned to my search, mentally high-fiving myself when I got access to the hidden communications channel. "Let's see what you're up to..." I whispered, browsing through secret codes, my eyes widening as I found what I've been looking for. "You've gotta be shitting me." I gasped, mouth slightly agape.

 

I changed into new clothes, hiding my long hair under a hoodie and my eyes behind a pair of sunglasses, sitting casually on a bench in the park. I glanced at the screen of my phone and saw that the red dot was getting closer. Potomac Plaza, Washington D.C., there were too many people walking around out in the open, if the bald guy wanted to try something, there would be a lot of eyes to witness the scene. The dot was closer... I locked my phone and shoved in the pocket of my hoodie, eyes behind the sunglasses looking up towards the direction of Glenn Talbot. If it were for me, I would've let the guy in Hydra's hands, but something wasn't adding up to the intel that I had. Why did they want him.

"Oh, no..." I whispered as soon as I saw General Talbot walking with his wife and son by his side, smiles on their faces. The kid ran off to a souvenir shop, leaving his parents to talk. Just as I was about to get on my feet, I saw a hooded man bump into the General's side, walking away casually. My brow furrowed because Talbot didn't notice the man slipping something into his pocket, which started to ring shortly after. Talbot seemed to panic for a moment, turning to his wife and told her to leave with the kid. I gave a quick look around to see if I could find any strange figure lurking around the park, but no one caught my attention, there were just too many people.

"Watch your six!" A female voice yelled, my head snapping to the direction of General Talbot, only to see him getting attacked by the same bald guy from yesterday. Why did that voice sound so familiar? Everything went down quickly, Talbot was knocked off his feet and that same woman who had spoked kicked away the bald guy, and the moment he tried to stand up, someone shot stud bullets at his chest which shocked him immediately with electric waves. The woman disappeared as soon as the military protective detail of the General had arrived on location.

I shot up on my feet and headed towards my car, eyes on Talbot as two people from his protective detail lead him to a black car. I put my hand into the pocket of the hoodie and swiftly pulled out a tiny metal ball, without being noticed, I threw it under the car and it bounced a few times, attaching itself under the vehicle. "Let's see where you're taking him..." I reached my car and got inside without wasting anymore time. This whole thing was suspicious, and that voice... Why couldn't I remember whose voice was that? "Jarvis, did you pick the signal from the tracer?" 

Being able to borrow one of Tony's cars had its perks, like having an AI to back me up when I needed it. _"The tracer has been activated successfully."_ Jarvis's voice came from the speakers, him displaying a map with a moving red dot on the car dashboard. _"It seems like they're headed for the highway."_

I started the engine and got out of the parking lot. "If it's a military vehicle, the car should have its own GPS signal, right?" I asked him, but his answer was exactly what I had expected.

_"It's not registered as a military vehicle."_ Jarvis replied. Just as I suspected. I spent the last few hours just driving silently, the black car that I had been following was a couple of miles ahead of me. There was nothing around me, just an expanse of land, way outside of Washington. _"The signal has disappeared."_ Jarvis's voice startled me, my hazel eyes turning to look at the map, no red dot.

__"What?" I murmured, furrowing my brow. "Jarvis, one car does not simply disappear." I pressed my foot all the way down on the gas pedal, the car speeding on the road. "Tell me the exact spot where the signal went off."_ _

___"Well, it seems-"_ The AI's voice started intermitting, until it stopped talking. An error message appeared on the dash, displaying an 'out of range' on the map._ _

__My foot switched on the stop pedal, abruptly arresting the car's movement. "Come on, Viktoria, think..." I looked outside of the windows, but there was nothing in sight, just trees and land. A heavy sigh escaped my pouting lips, hand meshing the reverse gear and I went a few feet backwards, eyes looking at the right until I saw some faint tire tracks off the road, on the rock ground. Reaching with my right hand in the pocket of my hoodie, I looked at the screen on my phone, which was out of range too, then put the device back to its place. I parked the car on the side of the road and locked it, feet walking down the path in the middle of nowhere until my eyes could not see the tire tracks anymore. "There must be..." I glanced around in confusion. A car could not simply disappear from the earth, unless... "Unless it's underground." I've spent too much time in underground facilities to be fooled by one trick. "Alright, open up!" I yelled loud, looking around, but nothing was happening. I took off my sunglasses and removed the hood from my head. "I'm asking nicely!" I hoped that my intuition was right and, if it wasn't, I looked like an idiot standing in the middle of nowhere while talking to no one._ _

__Suddenly, the earth a few feet from me begun moving, a ramp opening up to reveal and entrance, a male voice talking to me, but there was no one. _"Please, don't leave your car outside."__ _

___I blinked a few times, then shrugged. "Okay..?" I replied bewildered, then did as the voice said, descending into the facility until I found myself in a huge hangar, a S.H.I.E.L.D. Globemaster catching my attention along with the car that I had been following. "Shield?" I got out of the car and looked around, noticing one door at the bottom of the hangar, a few people making their way towards me, guns in their hands. I raised mine in an attempt to not look threatening, but the weapons wouldn't lower down. "Relax, I'm not a threat." I said._ _ _

___"That'll be for us to decide." A young girl said as soon as she was closer to me, her gun pointed at my head."_ _ _

___"I've got a Shield badge in the back pocket of my jeans." I said, eyes glancing at the two people in front of me, one girl and a man._ _ _

___"Sure, we all do nowadays." The guy spat back in a British accent._ _ _

___"Weapons down." A third voice said, male, my eyes widening in shock as I moved my eyes to look at him in utter disbelief. The two did as he said and glanced back at him as soon as they saw my reaction "Viktoria."_ _ _

___No, this wasn't happening. No, this could not be real. My hands covered my gaping mouth as my eyes begun filling with tears. "Please, tell me this isn't a terrible joke." I sobbed and shook my head, tears spilling onto my cheeks. My heart was beating fast and my knees started shaking under my weight._ _ _

___There he stood, alive, in front of my eyes and I really couldn't believe it. He had his usual formal suit on, hair brushed back neatly, an apologetic look on his features. "Viktoria..." Phil's words caught in his throat, unable to say what he wanted._ _ _

___"I buried you!" I yelled at him, not caring about the two people standing next to him, who were listening too with confused expressions. "After you've died in my arms!" My voice cracked, chest taking in a sharp breath while I clutched at my belly in pain. No, this was definitely too much to take in. All I was supposed to do was check out on the person that wanted to sell Shield high level intel, how could I've ever imagined something like this would've happened?_ _ _

___"Am I missing something?" The girl asked awkwardly, glancing in confusion around herself._ _ _

___Coulson didn't know what to say, he would have never expected me to just appear at the front door of the facility. He slowly stepped closer to me, arms lifting up and he pulled me in a tight embrace, my hands immediately lacing behind his back. "It's really me..." He said into my ear, one hand stroking my hair._ _ _

___I buried my face in the crook of his neck, sobbing like a child. "I've missed you so much..." Suddenly, I slipped out of his arms and quickly dried off my tear-stained cheeks, expression quickly changing from happiness to anger. "Why didn't you tell me you were alive?"_ _ _

___Coulson twitched his lips in guilt, and I knew right away what he was going to say. "Shield Protocol."_ _ _

___"Screw Shield Protocol!" I sneered. "I was ready to kill Loki for what he had done!" I sighed out heavily, starting to pace back and forth in frustration._ _ _

___"Do you want us to give you a moment?" The British guy asked, pointing behind him before Coulson gave him an affirmative nod, and he left with the other girl._ _ _

___"I'm sorry, Viktoria." Coulson apologized open-hearted._ _ _

___Abruptly, I stopped pacing, then turned my puffy hazel irises at him. "I can't deal with any more surprises! Did you kidnap Talbot?" Coulson nodded. "Cool, yeah, that's great!" I snapped, hitting the palms of my hands on my thighs. I chuckled hysterically, wide eyes looking at my presumed-deceased-father. "You know, I'm not even mad, just disappointed." My voice lowered, my face was pale with exhaustion._ _ _

___"We have so much to talk about..." Coulson said, but there was a silent message in his eyes. "But we're kind of in the middle of an operation." I nodded slowly in understanding. "Is that Stark's car?" He asked me and I gave him a tired look._ _ _

___"One of the many..." I replied, glancing at the gray Audi parked behind me. "What gave it away?"_ _ _

___"The tracer we found under our car is Stark Industries tech." So they did find it, probably after they had disappeared from the map._ _ _

___"And you know, right, if I don't get back on the grid he will send someone to look for me?" I asked him, referring to the signal going dark._ _ _

___"I'll tell Skye to enable your phone so you can use it in the facility." Coulson told me, but I shook my head earning a from from him._ _ _

___I gave him a soft smile, memorizing his features which had changed a bit in two years, almost three. "I should probably go. It seems like you have everything under control." I nodded behind him at the people piling up in the distance, staring at me and Coulson, one of them I recognized as Melinda May. It was her voice back at the Potomac Plaza, I remembered._ _ _

___His expression saddened almost imperceptibly. "Are you sure you don't want to stay some more? I was really looking forward to have a chat with you, catch up on your life since I've been away." He said hopeful to change my mind, but I really wasn't feeling like staying. My heart was rejoicing knowing that Coulson was alive, but I needed time to actually let the truth sink in. Maybe this was the feeling that everyone went through when they learned the truth about me, the hurt..._ _ _

___"Maybe some other time..." I replied, gazing into his eyes. "Besides, there's not much to know..." My smile faded and I had to avert my eyes from him, looking down at the ground in guilt. "Stark wanted to make sure that those S.S.R. Items were safe. Can you look into it for me?"_ _ _

___"Leave it to me." Phil said, one hand resting on my shoulder to give me some comfort. All those years that we spent together he could tell that something wasn't feeling right, the look in my eyes was different, more troubled. "Give me a call whenever you want."_ _ _

___I nodded slowly. "Do you want me to keep it secret?" I asked him, and Phil hesitated not answering. "Don't worry, I'll keep it for myself, dad." I said reassuringly, then drew him in for a long hug, feeling the familiar warmth radiating from his body. He was real, alive and breathing. I couldn't have been more happier._ _ _

___ _

___I was back in New York the next day, reporting to Tony what I had found out and avoided telling him about Coulson and his team. He was working in the lab on something with Bruce, merely paying attention to me. "That's all?" He asked me after a moment of silence, fidgeting with the keyboard of a computer._ _ _

___"Well, what else do you want me to tell you?" I furrowed my brow at him tiredly. I wasn't in the mood of keeping up with his biting sarcasm._ _ _

___"Like disappearing from the grid, or who else is taking care of the guy that attacked Talbot in a park." Tony said, finally turning around to stare at me. Bruce glanced at us from his peripheral vision, busy as he was working on some kind of new tech._ _ _

___"I have no idea." Oh, there goes another lie. "You can ask Jarvis. I lost signal on the car that I was following and shortly after all of my devices stopped working." I said with a look of obliviousness. "I was in the middle of nowhere, that's why I came back." Tony's brows were arched. "You've seen it yourself. Talbot is safe. I was probably following the wrong trail."_ _ _

___"Hm..." Tony groaned softly, then shrugged. "You tried." He admitted with a single nod. "Go, the Science Bros are busy." Strangely, he didn't ask further questions, a sense of relief washing over me._ _ _

___"Alright, Tony... Bye, Bruce." I waved at the scientist and headed for the door._ _ _

___"Bye, Viktoria." He replied with a smile while looking up at me, earning a weird look from his lab partner. "What? Is there something on my face?" He asked, touching his right cheek in confusion._ _ _

___I went to my apartment and, in the hallway, I saw Sam standing in front of Steve's door, probably waiting for him. "Viktoria." Sam smiled, waving at me as soon as he saw me. "How've you been, girl?"_ _ _

___I smiled back tiredly, stopping in front of my door to greet him. "I've had better days." I replied with a soft sigh. "What about you?" Just as I asked him, the front door to Steve's apartment opened and he stepped out, only to look up and see me standing there._ _ _

___"Good, very good." Sam replied, but then he noticed the silent and long exchange of looks between me and Steve, deciding to take the matter in his own hands since his friend did not say a word, only a small nod to greet me. "Since you're back, wanna join us for a drink? I promise you'll have fun." Sam asked me, swiftly nudging Steve in the side to back him up, at least he hope Steve would._ _ _

___"Huh, yeah, sure... If you're up for it." The blonde said, corners of his lips curving slightly upwards._ _ _

___I thought about it for a moment, but then shrugged a bit, giving them an apologetic look. "Thank you, but I think I'll pass... I'm a bit worn out."_ _ _

___"Is everything okay?" Steve's expression seemed to change in a worried expression, Sam bit his bottom lips at his friend's sudden interest._ _ _

___I chuckled to ease his concern, but his brow furrowed even more. "Apart from wasting my time on a useless undercover mission?" I joked, then shook my head at the floor. "I'm okay, thanks for asking." Steve nodded, his tense jaw relaxing. "I'll see you guys at the party tomorrow."_ _ _

___"Bye, Viktoria." Said sam before I disappeared behind the door to my apartment. Sam looked at Steve, noticing that the blonde's eyes were fixed on the wooden door in front of them. "Can you dance?"_ _ _

___Steve narrowed his gaze at Sam, quite taken aback by the question. "Why do you ask?"_ _ _

___"Romanoff and I kinda made a bet..." The other one said casually, heading for the elevator, ignoring the fact that Steve had started asking him what kind of bet, mostly, why did they bet in the first place. "We shall see tomorrow..." He murmured satisfied._ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if it's just me or this chapter was somewhat crappy, but today was not that good of a day. Hope yours was (is) better than mine ♡


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's getting back together (yeah, I still have no idea what chapter summaries are for if not being spoilers for what's about to come.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I've had a terrible morning but at least this fanfiction makes me feel better. I was planning on finishing this chapter for the weekend, but I just wanted to get my mind off of some school stuff, soooo, I kinda finished it today! Hope you like it, though I didn't proof-read it for mistakes and just grammar in general, but I hope you like it anyway.
> 
>  
> 
> The song at the end of the chapter is called "Tenderly" by Rosemary Clooney, which I absolutely love and listened to it nonstop while writing the last scene. Here's the link so you can listen to it (trust me, it's a wonderful song) [Rosemary Clooney - Tenderly](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbQjDxA7g-M) ♡

My pupils were gazing lazily at the picture on the nightstand, the light inside of the room was slowly fading away. I had been lying in bed the whole day since I had returned yesterday. I wasn't feeling well, not in the physical sense, just the emotional, but it still affected me. My phone buzzed for the fifth time next to the picture of Coulson and I, from a couple of years ago, and I finally moved my arms from under the bedsheets and picked up my phone, reading the texts.

 

**➤Naah-Tasha**  
_—I got ya a dress :)_  
_—Wanna have breakfast with me and Clint?_  
_—Are you still sleeping?_  
_—Moon Moon meme for when you wake up_  
_—If you're still alive, come and open up. Or I'll call Steve to throw down the door._

My brow furrowed at the last and most recent text, I shot up on the mattress when I heard a few knocks coming from the front door of my apartment. _"Okay. Take it down, Steve."_

I gasped as soon as I heard those words, jumping out of bed and ran through the apartment, rushing to swing the door open before he could knock it down, which Tony would have blamed on me later. "Don't!" I yelled at them, but besides Nat, there was no one else around. My shoulders slumped down at the realization of the redhead's trick, a sigh of relief being released from my mouth. She was all dolled up, ready for tonight's party, plump lips colored with a bright red lipstick and light smokey eyeshadow on her eyelids, short hair twisted in perfect curls, a knee-length green dress on her that accentuated the curves.

Natasha gave a raised eyebrow, arms crossed over her chest. She was definitely mad at me. "Why were you ignoring me, Viktoria?" She asked me with a stern voice. "Clint and I are worried." Her expression and voice softened after a short while. She picked up from the ground a large box, stepping inside of my apartment and headed for the bedroom, where she placed the box on the bed. "Care to answer and not just stand there staring at me?"

"You look stunning." I murmured whilst leaning on the doorframe to my bedroom, arms crossed over my chest.

"Don't change subject with compliments." Natasha pointed one finger at me, sitting down on the edge of the bed with one leg on top of the other. "I know something's wrong, spit it out."

I sighed, rolling my eyes. "Nothing's wrong, I just spent the whole day sleeping." I lied, but I really didn't want to talk about it. "Is that the dress?" I tried to change the subject once again by nodding at the box and Natasha stopped insisting. She nodded in defeat, hand softly brushing on the lid of the box, Nat then removed the cover and exposed a bright red color.

My eyes widened in delight, a smile making its way on my features. "Oh, Nat... You shouldn't have..." I murmured in astonishment as she picked up the dress and showed it to me.

"We didn't get the chance to go shopping, so I took the freedom of buying you something nice." Natasha smiled proud, holding out the dress for me to get a better look. I tried it on and it was a perfect fit, the bright red of the fabric was a nice contrast to my pale skin. "See? I want all the eyes to be onto you tonight."

I chuckled at her words whilst checking out myself in the mirror. The dress covered my shoulders halfway and flew down into a stylish Queen Anne neckline, leaving the arms exposed; the waist was tight yet comfortable, and below it the gown widened in a circle, the hem of the skirt reaching to my knees. "I don't want everyone's eyes on me..." I whispered before pouting my lips.

Natasha rested the palms of her hands on my shoulder and looked at me through the mirror, a playful smirk on her plump lips. "You want Steve's?"

I gasped like a shy teenager would and turned my head sharply to stare at her, heat rising in my cheeks to match the color of my dress. "Tell me you're not planning to be a match-maker tonight. I know you too well." The look of suspicion on my makeup-less face was enough to make the redhead giggle, then she shrugged nonchalant.

"I'm multitasking, remember?" She grinned, then walked into the bathroom to look through my makeup. Oh, Lord... This was going to be hard for me, I hated being around too many people, moreover rich ones and Tony's acquaintances. I pushed in the back of my mind my antisocial thoughts and decided to try and have some fun tonight.

 

Nope, I wasn't having fun at all, the bartender seemed to be my only salvation tonight. I lost count on the guys that tried to hit on me. This once guy in particular, still persistent, kept on talking how he was one of the most successful between his family members, how he used his brain instead of wasting it. My tactic of simply ignoring him wasn't working. After my third Martini, I looked at the guy and gave him a sick look, his expression changing quickly into one of horror as he realized that I was about to throw up on him and he quickly excuse himself, running away to annoy someone else. I sighed in relief after recomposing myself and glanced at the bartender. "Another one?" The man asked me and I shook my head.

"I'll need something stronger." I told him while leaning against the counter, hoping he would hear me even if the music in the background was quite loud.

"Lady Viktoria!" A very familiar voice said behind me. I glanced behind me and saw Thor dressed in a formal tuxedo, flashing me one of his brightest smiles. 

I pulled him in for a hug after greeting him and smiled happily. "It's nice to see you, Thor. How have you been?" I asked him, but then furrowed my brow when I didn't see Jane Foster with him. "Where's Jane?"

"She couldn't come because of work, but she sent you her best regards." The Asgardian replied. "Anyway, Midgard is not that bad, maybe a bit antiquated in technology."

I giggled at his choice of words. "Want to drink something?" I nodded towards the bar, but Thor showed me a devious smirk and tapped lightly on the pocket of his jacket. "I've got some special Asgardian mead with me."

My eyes widened. "Is it strong?" He nodded, starting to pull out the silver flask from his jacket as I picked up my empty Martini glass from the bar counter. Thor poured some of the mead into the glass and warned me to not have it in one gulp since it was stronger than Midgard's alcohol. We made a small toast and I brought the edge of the glass closer to my red lips, sipping at the liquid very carefully. The strong scent of some kind of flower inebriated my nostrils while the taste started very sweet on the tip of my tongue, but as soon as it descended my throat, it burned like Hell's fire.

Thor laughed as my expression contorted in discomfort, one hand reaching up to rub at the skin on my neck. "Do you like it?"

I took in a sharp breath while leaning my back on the counter behind me and glanced up at the blonde's eyes. "No..." I shook my head. "I love it. I wonder if I can actually get drunk on this."

"Ah, I knew I'd find you at the bar." Stark's voice reached our ears, the billionaire made his way through the crowd of people until he was beside us, Clint and Bruce with him too.

"We heard that you almost barfed on a guy." Clint said, a knowing look on his features. All of them were dressed in elegant clothes, enjoying themselves, yet Bruce seemed quite out of place among all those people, even nervous.

I rolled my eyes at them. "You know, I actually might vomit on the next person who tries to hit on me."

"Why would someone hit you?" Thor asked me, putting away his flask.

"It's a way to say flirting..." Explained Bruce. "A bad kind of flirting."

"Oh..." Thor nodded in understanding, then glanced at me. "Lady Sif usually displays her sword to scare away the unwanted attention, but..." He trailed off. "I guess a gun could do the job the same way."

Everyone shook their heads at Thor's suggestion. "Thanks, but having you guys around is enough." I gulped down the rest of the Asgardian mead and set the empty Martini glass on the counter. "I'll look for Natasha, see you around." I said, before leaving the guys at the bar. It didn't take long for the mead to start affecting me; I was feeling light-headed, almost stumbling through the crowd whilst also looking around frantically for my friend. Someone bumped into me and I lost balance on my heels, still fully conscious that my body would hit the ground in a matter of seconds. I shut my eyes, bracing myself for the fall... But nothing happened.

"Hey." My eyes shot open to see Steve's face only a few inches away from mine, that same worried look on his features. His hold around my back tightened, pulling up to stand straight, but he didn't let me go.

"Hey..." I murmured, pupils fixed on his blue irises. Just as my heart skipped a beat, the DJ changed music, the beat becoming slow and the people around us went along with the rhythm while the two of us just gazed into each other's eyes.

Off in a corner of the room, Sam and Natasha looked at the two lovebirds with smirks on their faces. "Told you that the plan would work out." The redhead nudged him in the side with her elbow.

"They're not dancing..." Sam pointed out and held out his hand. "If he doesn't start dancing in a minute, you owe me fifty bucks."

I placed my hands on Steve's chest and shifted my weight from one leg to the other. "Everyone's dancing..." I murmured, him glancing for a brief moment around us, suddenly feeling too aware of his stiffness. I laced my arms around his shoulders, feeling his muscles beginning to relax a few seconds later.

"I can't dance." He replied in a whisper, a slight crease between his eyebrows, both hands resting on my hips. I began swaying lightly on my heels and Steve immediately looked down at my feet, trying to follow the pattern.

I smiled softly at him. "Eyes on me, Steve. Just follow the music..." His blue irises locked once again on my hazel ones and his feet moved on their own accord, slowly, but he was dancing.

"Fifty bucks." Natasha held out her hand at Sam and the guy rolled his eyes in defeat, yet he felt happy for his friend.

"There's something I need to get off my chest." What Steve said caught me off guard, but we didn't stop dancing. I made a small nod for him to continue. "I've thought about it for a long time... About us." His expression was serious, yet not stern, and his voice was soft. "I was hurt, and in a certain way I still am." My heart started beating a bit faster in anticipation for what he could say next. "I've tried telling myself that I don't love you." My shoulders slumped a little and my faint smile faltered. "But that's not true, I still love you."

I was at a loss for words, my brain just wasn't functioning correctly and my feet stopped moving, his doing the same. "Steve-" I said his name, mouth slightly opened. If I had been feeling the effects of Asgardian's mead just a few moments ago, I was completely sober now.

"I'm ready to try again, if you are?" Steve's eyebrows raised imperceptibly, lips curving up in a hopeful smile.

Everything around us seemed to disappear, it was as if we were the only people in the room, I had eyes for no one else but him. I nodded at him while biting my bottom lips. "I'm a better person when I'm with you, you know? I'll try not to screw it up once again." 

Steve chuckled, his arms sliding behind my back as he pulled me closer to him, till my body was pressed to his and our feet started moving again, following the slow rhythm of the music. "And I should learn how to dance, but that's another story."

With warm palms I cupped his cheeks and stroked tenderly the smooth skin with my thumbs. "I mean it, Steve. I really love you, and more importantly, I care about you. I'll do whatever it takes to make this work."

He leaned in and rested his forehead on mine, pupils dilating as he gazed into my eyes. "How about we start being honest with each other? No more lies, no more secrets..." Lies... Secrets... There was so much he didn't know and some things he should never come to know, but I was willing to be completely honest with him for the sake of our relationship.

My nostrils filled with his strong scent, a familiar warm feeling spreading into my chest as he held me in his arms. For a moment, only a small fraction, I feared he could disappear and leave me alone once again, but I had to push that thought deep down and in the back of my mind, focusing only on his presence. "That sounds good to me..." His lips grazed mine delicately, for the first time not caring to show some PDA around people. It was a short chaste kiss, yet my heart exploded with joy as if being reborn.

_The evening breeze caressed the trees tenderly_  
_The trembling trees embraced the breeze tenderly_  
_Then you and I came wandering by_  
_And lost in a sigh were we_  
_The shore was kissed by sea and mist tenderly_  
_I can't forget how two hearts met breathlessly_  
_Your arms opened wide and closed me inside_  
_You took my lips, you took my love so tenderly_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, now that Steve and Viktoria are back together, should there be some smut? Gosh, I love reading smut, too bad I'm not that good at writing it myself.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whooohooo another chapter and I'm so done with studying literature.
> 
> No really, it's late and I just wanted to post this as soon as I have finished studying. I have nothing to say, cause I'm tired, but I hope you enjoy this chapter. I extended the fic to other 5 chaps, as you may have noticed

Since we were back together, Steve always had a warm smile on his features and I spent my nights in his apartment. We were more open about our troubles and thoughts, sometimes we were just lying in bed as he read a book and I dozed off to sleep, cuddled under his arm. Thankfully, no more desk jobs for me, I was too antisocial, Tony's words. Missions had decreased in the last months as Hydra members seemed to have had disappeared from the earth, probably went into hiding.

Our breathing was ragged, laying on our backs under the bedsheets with a sheen of sweat on our skin and eyes staring at the ceiling. I looked at Steve from my peripheral vision, a sigh escaping my lips. "Do you ever think we should just stop doing this?" I blurted out, maybe letting my tongue run faster than my brain.

Steve gave me a confused look, furrowed brow as he licked his lips. "Having multiple rounds in one night?" He asked me.

I chuckled and shook my head. "I'm not talking about that..." Turning on my left side while leaning on my elbow, I put my head on the back of my hands and sighed again. Steve's attention was all on me. "I mean, fighting, saving the world, fighting again..." Steve turned on his side too, bedsheets slipping down his torso. "Do you think we could, you know, have a normal life someday?"

Steve fell silent, thinking about my words, but he couldn't come up with an answer, instead, he asked me a question. "Do you want to have a family?"

The air caught up in my lungs, my mouth slightly agape. Just as my heart had slowed down from the intense bed-action, it started beating faster yet again. "I-I've never stopped to think about it..." I confessed, laying back down, my head on the pillow and looked at the ceiling. "Do you?"

Steve slipped closer to me under the bedsheets, resting his left arm on top of my covered belly and pecked my cheek. "Someday, maybe." His lips curved up in a smile, breath lingering on my flushed skin. "Viktoria?"

"Hm..?" The tips of our noses met, eyes gazing at each other.

"We should look for a nice place in Brooklyn." He said, his grin becoming wider at the thought of buying a place for the two of us. 

I smiled softly while pressing my forehead to his. "Yeah, we should... It's not like we can keep on living on Tony's expenses forever." He chuckled, then leaned in and kissed me.

 

It was late in the evening when I was about to retire for the night; I was in Maria's office, checking out some intel about dangerous weapons missing from the Fridge. "Apart from the stuff that the Government has in its deposits and some that are still in the few Shield bases left, we still know nothing about these ones." Maria said, showing me a few objects on an iPad.

I furrowed my brow at one particular object. "I bet Hydra got their hands on Loki's Scepter as soon as they had the chance." That thing was far more dangerous than any other missing weapon, its magic was too powerful for human hands. A few more seconds passed as I stared at the sharp blade of the Scepter and a question popped in my mind. "Have you heard from Coulson lately?"

Maria's face turned into one of shock after she heard his name, but she played it cool, shaking her head at me and pretended not to know what I was talking about. "Viktoria, you know he-" Dead, she wanted to say, but I interrupted her.

"Alive." The woman licked her bottom lip then bit it, slumping down her shoulders in defeat. "He hasn't answered my texts or calls in a while now. I'm worried."

"I'm sorry we hid it from you, but..." She begun apologizing.

"Shield Protocol, I know." I gave her a reassuring smile and she seemed to ease up a little. "I understand why nobody told me, but if I had known about it, it sure would have made my life a little bit better."

"Did you tell Steve?" Maria asked me, leaning forward to place her forearms on her desk. 

I shook my head. "I can't even bring myself to think about it." I replied honestly. "Remember when Fury threw those vintage cards on the table?" She nodded sadly, knowing that those weren't in his jacket when he had died. "Yeah, I don't want to see that same regretful look on his face. Maybe I'll tell him, eventually, I don't know." I shrugged, then stood up from the chair and took in a deep breath.

"I'll give him a call and see what he's up to." Maria promised, giving me a small smile.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out from the back of my jeans, glancing at the screen. "Huh, time to go." I raised my brows at the woman sitting at her desk and then turned to leave. "Apparently, Tony doesn't know what sleep means." I headed to the labs and saw Tony fidgeting with various tools until he saw me arrive, then his grin widened as he stopped in the middle of the lab with a proud expression. "I guess you did something good?"

"Good?" The genius scoffed. "I did something great. Bring it in, Jarvis." He said out loud, one door to the side of the lab opening and a tall robot walked towards us, front of the mask resembling Iron Man's. I glanced at the neck of the bot and noticed that it wasn't a new suit, more like a stand-alone droid. "I present you the Iron Legion." Tony extended his arms to the robot and nodded his head in satisfied approval. "Huh, what do you think?" The droid was white, with a red number for identification on the right of his breastplate and the symbol of the Avengers on the left part.

"Is he called the 'Iron Legion' or are there more of him?" I asked while crossing my arms, a curious expression on my features.

Tony rolled his eyes as soon as he heard my question. "Technically, I'm the one in control of the Iron Man support armors." Jarvis's voice came from the droid, my head tilting at his voice.

"Wait, did you use me as a Beta Tester for these guys?" I turned my hazel eyes to Tony's. All those past months I spent in the gym training wasn't actually to help _me_ train, it was to train them.

The man shrugged nonchalantly, the droid's head moving towards him. "I thought you had informed Miss Alkaeva." If Jarvis would have been an actual person, his words would have sounded a bit accusatory.

"Guess I forgot to mention it." The man replied, launching a death glare at the droid for calling him out on that matter. "Enough with the questions." Tony clapped his hands cheerfully. "Time to celebrate, you and I, great pals." I chuckled at his statement and nodded. I was actually happy that he and I made some progress with our friendship. We didn't attack each other with biting sarcasm for the purpose to annoy, but we were still on the same level of humor.

"I thought you and Bruce were great pals, but I'll gladly accept that drink." I said with a devious smirk, eyes moving to an expensive bottle of whiskey and two glasses on a working desk, in a corner of the lab.

"I'll tell you what, Foxy..." Tony slurred his words after his fourth glass of whiskey, the empty vessel in his right hand was dangerously sliding from his grasp as his fingers loosened around the object. "I like you, even if sometimes I act like a jerk."

"That's nice, Tonio." I gulped down the rest of my whiskey and set down the glass on the table, then gently removed the empty glass from his hand and set it down too, while he protested. I always forgot how humans were easily affected by alcohol, and I would not let Tony drink any drip more of the burning liquid. "Come on, let's get you to bed." I stood up and helped him on his feet by snaking his right arm around my shoulders for support. He was heavy, sure, but I could lift weights bigger than him thanks to my powers.

"But I mean it." Tony insisted, sliding his feet on the floor, occasionally stomping them like a careless child as we walked towards the elevator. I pressed the button to call for the lift and turned my head to look at him. "We all like you." Tony said, eyelids half closed giving me a narrowed look.

"Please, don't say anything more." I said, looking away. I didn't mind listening to drunk confessions, but sometimes people's thoughts could be too much information about their personal life.

"Why? Are you still mad I treated you like crap for months?" Tony scoffed while trying to wriggle himself free from my grasp. I held him tighter and sighed heavily, trying to keep him up on his feet since his knees were giving out under his weight. "Look, I'm sorry, but I told you that I have trust issues."

The doors to the elevator suddenly slid open and our eyes met Steve's, hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans casually. The soldier looked at Tony and tilted his head after a short moment, eyeing me as if I was responsible for his drunk state. _Please, help me,_ I mouthed to him and his blue irises were back on Tony. "Didn't know you could get wasted on a Wednesday."

"Oh, shut up, Captain!" Tony breathed out. "You talk like that only because you can't get drunk." He took in a deep breath and twitched his mouth as if thinking about something. "Neither Viktoria can, but she still is a good buddy."

"Alright, Tonio, let's keep it friendly." I moved inside of the elevator and Steve pressed the button to Tony's floor and the doors closed. 

The ride was quiet, except for the billionaire's soft humming of a rock song, head lulling back and forth to the rhythm. "Jeez... Why are you guys so tense? Did you have a fight or something?"

I exchanged a quick glance with my boyfriend, noticing that indeed Steve's expression seemed a bit troubled and I asked myself why I didn't take note of it sooner. "You're drunk, stop imagining things and think about your bed." I told him and, oddly, he let go of the argument. As soon as we put Tony to bed and went back to our apartment, I crossed my arms and looked at Steve, concern lacing my voice. "Love, what's wrong?"

He let out a long breath, then walked to the coffee table in the living room and picked up my computer, showing me the bright screen. "This," he said, brows arched, "why didn't you tell me?" Steve asked me hurtful.

I gave a close look at the opened paged on the computer and mentally slapped myself for forgetting to close all the files, tabs and research engines. "I really have no excuse for keeping it from you..." I replied honestly whilst taking the device from him and set it down on the coffee table, sitting on the sofa. I looked at the picture of Bucky and just thought about it. I should have told him that I've been looking for him, I've been trying to track him down for months, since he contacted me the first time and then never again.

"Viktoria, this is Bucky we're talking about." Steve's voice became suddenly colder. "If you were looking for him, you should have told me." This was going to escalate quickly in an argument that I wished we could avoid, but no relationship is perfect. "How long have you been trying to track him down?" He asked me, arms crossed over his broad chest and brow furrowed at me.

I closed the laptop and leaned against the backrest of the sofa. "Since we lost him." I said, but it wasn't exactly true. I've never told Steve that Bucky had called me once.

"I thought we both agreed on the 'no more secrets' part." The blonde pointed out, a note of disappointment in his words.

I sighed while standing up from the sofa and stepped in front of him. "Look, we have so many things to think about and I didn't want you to stress yourself with this too." I reached up to cup his cheeks, but he moved away from me, my feelings hurt at the rejection. "Steve... If I had found him, you would have been the first person to know it." I was truly sorry, I really should have informed him about it.

"Is there anything else I should know?" He asked me, and a flash of me meeting Coulson crossed my mind.

I was about to say something, but the words caught in my throat. "Well... It depends, if you promise me not to freak out..." I was saying, but his eyes widened in disbelief and his arms fell to his sides quickly. "Hey," I laced my hands with his, giving him a hopeful smile, "just promise me you're gonna take it in very slowly. No sudden outbursts, okay?" Steve's jaw clenched for a short moment, then nodded. "Huh..." I was feeling nervous now, I really didn't know how he'd take it. "I found out that..." My heart beat faster with each spoken word and I could tell he was on the edge too. "Coulson in alive." I whispered, but he had no reaction, just gazed at me.

"That's... hard to believe." He breathed out, disbelief on his features. "Absurd."

"No, no, I'm serious." I insisted when he didn't believe me. "He asked me not to tell anyone because he was trying to put back together what was left of Shield." Steve scoffed, again, not believing my words. This was too unexpected and badly expressed.

"Do you really expect me to believe that Agent Coulson is alive?" He slipped his hands out of mine, rubbing his face tiredly as his brain could not process my words. "It's been three years since he died, why didn't anyone say anything about him?"

"Shield Protocol." I replied automatically, then groaned at my own words. "I didn't know either that he was alive until some time ago. You can ask Hill if you don't believe me." 

Steve gave me another odd look, doubtful. "Do you have anything else to shock me with?" I shook my head vigorously.

"It's late... We'll talk about this tomorrow." Steve murmured, stepping closer to me and pecked my forehead softly before heading for the bedroom.

I followed him after a short while and saw that he was already in bed, lights switched off, so I took off my clothes and slipped under the covers. He was facing the wall and giving me his back, I got closer to him and snaked my arm around his torso, flat palm of my hand on his chest. I could feel his tense muscle, heart beating just a bit irregular. "I'm sorry, love..." I whispered with a muffled voice. We stayed like that for a long while, in the end Steve sighed heavily and turned around his body, keeping me close to him with his arms around me.

 

I woke up the next morning, my hands automatically moving to Steve's side of the bed and I felt nothing. Blinking my eyes open a few times, I noticed that the spot beside me was empty, no sound in the whole apartment. He would never leave without telling me, so I guessed that he was still bothered from what he had learned last night. My hands closed around his pillow and pulled it to my chest, hugging it for some comfort. You should have told him, the thought crossed my mind, I promised him no more secrets, that was why I stayed in bed some more, thinking about any other things that maybe I had omitted from him. My phone rang on the nightstand and pulled me out of my head. "Yeah?" I answered without looking at the caller ID.

 _"It's me."_ Coulson spoke on the other side of the line.

I rolled on my back and looked at the ceiling. "Where have you been? I've called you so many times and texted." My voice sounded hoarse, but I was worried about him.

 _"We are kind in a bad situation over here."_ he said, my brow furrowing immediately. _"Did Maria tell you about the Scepter?"_

"No?" I replied, sitting up on the mattress. She did call him last night. "Have you found it?"

 _"It's in Sokovia, Hydra has it. Hill has all the details."_ Coulson told me, some strange sounds coming from the background. _"I gotta got now... Love you."_

"Love you too..." I murmured, then hung up. Sokovia, huh? Didn't Shield have a base there?

"You're awake." Steve's voice startled me and I dropped the phone in my lap. He stood by the doorframe, blue irises fixed on me. "Were you talking to someone?" He asked me.

I slid out of bed and picked up my previously discarded shirt. "Dad... He said they found the Scepter's location." I pulled on my jeans and buttoned them.

"I just heard about it too." Steve said. "We have a meeting in an hour." I nodded, suddenly feeling lightheaded. Steve narrowed his eyes as he saw the color drain from my face. "Viktoria..?" He swiftly reached me with his hands and held me up on my feet just as they were about to give up. "Viks, what's wrong? Look at me." He cupped my left cheek, feeling the skin burn under his touch.

I grabbed his upper arms for support, squinting my eyes a few times, trying to focus, but my head was spinning too fast. "I-I need to sit down for a minute." Steve nodded, helping me towards the bed and we sat on the edge, his arms still laced around me protectively. I took in slow and deep breaths, trying to ease the tension in my whole body, but the only change I could feel was the nausea building up in my belly. "I think I need to throw up..." I murmured, bolting from the bed and run to the bathroom, body crouching immediately on the toilet to let it all out.

Steve was right beside me, one hand holding back my hair so that it wouldn't get in my face and the other was drawing soothing patterns on my back. "Better?" He asked me after a while and I nodded sluggishly while reaching up to flush the toilet. I was still sitting on the ground, just in case I might throw up again. He looked at my tear-stained face and brought me a towel to help me dry my skin.

"I shouldn't have drunk that much last night..." I murmured, my throat burning from the disgusting feeling. Yes, I could drink as much as I wanted without getting drunk, but I usually ended up throwing up the excess that my body couldn't take, just like humans did... Though, I wondered why it didn't happen last night but this morning.

"Do you want to stay here and rest?" Steve asked me, crouched on his knees with a crease between his eyebrows.

"No, I'll just have a shower and brush my teeth to get rid of..." I shivered, my face contorting in repulsion. "I'm sorry you had to see this."

"It's fine, love." Steve reassured me, a kind smile on his features. "Together through the ups and downs."

 

By the time the meeting was about to start, I was feeling better. Steve and I were holding hands as we entered the conference room, all of the Avengers gathered into one place. If all of us were here, then this was some serious business. "Please, tell me there no alien invasion, again." I looked at Maria, who was standing on her feet in front of a big screen, while everyone else was sat at a table.

Clint, who was sitting next to Natasha, nudged her lightly on the side and nodded his head to my and Steve's entwined fingers, a playful smirk on their faces.

"Not to our knowledge." Replied Thor, lightly shrugging his shoulders. It was quite funny to see him dressed in casual clothes, not his usual Asgardian armor.

"Just take a seat." Tony muttered, head leaning on his hand for support, probably too hangover from last night's drinking.

As soon as Steve and I sat down, me next to Nat, Maria displayed Loki's Scepter on the screen behind her, along with other details about the Hydra base and the heads of the researchers. "One of my sources found out that two new heads of HYDRA stole Loki's Scepter during the attack on S.H.I.E.L.D. and have been conducting experiments on subjects, more specifically Sokovian civilians. Wolfgang von Strucker, the head, and his scientist, Doctor List." The pictures of the two men appeared on the screen. "They've been trying to harness the magic of the Scepter to power the alien weapons, which were left behind after the Battle of New York."

"Guess they haven't made any progress, then?" Asked Bruce, eyes looking at the picture of the Scepter in horror.

Maria's expression seemed to sadden way before she was about to speak. "They performed experiments on living human subjects instead."

Shivers run down my spine, an uneasy feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. I looked down at the hands resting in my lap, hating myself for having ever been Hydra's asset in the first place.

Steve spoke up after a while of silence. "So we go to Sokovia, take down the HYDRA soldiers, save the people kept in their lab and retrieve Loki's Scepter."

"For as long as we know, there could be and not be, but we should assume there is someone to save." Maria said.

Natasha looked closely at the holographic screen. "How do we proceed?"

I looked up and fixed my eyes on her. "I can only assume the base is heavily guarded. It won't be easy to get inside without going unnoticed." I said, then bit my lower lip. "But... I may have an idea."

Clint's brow furrowed. He didn't like that expression on my face, not even one bit. We've been on missions so many times he could quickly recognize when I was thinking of something irresponsible. "You should really stop throwing yourself in as a decoy." His voice wasn't stern, more concerned about my safety than anything else.

I tilted my head and widened my eyes at his words. "Has it ever failed?" I asked him, and he shook his head in defeat. "See. Why shouldn't it work this time too?"

Steve scoffed at my left. "No ones going in without a plan, especially you." His eyes moved from me to Stark.

The billionaire appeared to be offended by the Captain's words. "That was once. And I had a plan. Attack." He defended himself.

"Well, when you're done arguing, suit up and go do your thing." Maria interrupted, nonchalant looking at everyone. For a moment I thought as if she was treating us like children, and she was the exhausted mother. "We can't let them keep on experimenting on innocent civilians."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave comments and kudos to support the work and show some love for the author <3


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeellloooo everyone. Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I had a long week and I went to "prom" on Friday night. Got a hungover for two days. *sigh* I used quotation marks because prom here is an elegant dinner with my classmates and teachers, then we went clubbing till like 5am. Only two teachers came to the club with us, which made me very happy because I really love my English teacher, I've known her for 6 years now.  
> Anyway, I had fun, kissed two random guys for the only reason that I wanted to kiss somebody. it was cool. I got really drunk and embarrassed myself (which happened last year too). But I still had fun, in the end.
> 
>  
> 
> Well, this chapter was written differently at first, the beginning is the same, but I changed it towards the end cause I didn't like the result. Bear with me, I still have a headache from Friday night and this chapter might not be that well written or interesting (believe me, I tried, but I feel like something's missing), but I hope you still like and enjoy it anyway.
> 
> I'd like to hear your thoughts on the story so far :D Constructive criticism is always accepted.

"You ready?" Steve asked me, blue irises looking at me from behind his Captain America mask. He was sitting on his bike, ready to engage in battle while fixing his shield onto the handlebars of the vehicle.

I stretched out my arms, above my head, loud cracking sounds coming from my joints. "To hop off a flying jet on a motorbike with you?" I gave him a weird look, then sat behind him on the bike. "And you thought my plan was careless." I scoffed, lacing my arms around his waist. He shook his head.

"We're ready when you're ready." Clint yelled from the cockpit of the Quinjet, Nat was sat beside him. As soon as we would touch ground, they'd engage too.

"We're ready." Steve and I replied simultaneously. Clint clicked a button and the back ramp of the jet opened, the bike's engine roaring. "I'll get you a ride as soon as we touch ground." I said to them.

"Copy that." Nat nodded. "Drop point in three, two, one..." The Quinjet lowered enough between the trees and Steve gave gas to the bike. "Give them hell."

I tightened my grip around Steve's waist as soon as I felt the bike start moving. A few seconds later and he was driving through the outer forest of Sokovia, nearing the enemy's territory. Snow was falling from the sky and the ground was covered by a thick layer of whiteness, ruined my the wheels of the running motorbike. The air was cold, harsh against our faces. As soon as we crossed the border, an alarm resounded in the distance, Iron Man and Thor flew above our heads. "Here they come." I said into Steve's ear, referring both to the team and Hydra. While still keeping a hold around his waist with my left arm, I unholstered the gun on my right hip with my other hand and pointed it towards the enemies charging in front of us.

Steve grabbed his shield and threw it on some Hydra agents to knock them down, the round object bouncing back as soon as the job was done. Finally, I slipped my left arm from around his waist and closed my fingers on the shield while Steve drove through the forest. "I'll get close to them, can you make the jump?" Steve asked me, nodding to a car on our right. After a quick glance at the vehicle, I fixed his shield on his back and carefully moved up on the backseat with my feet, one hand on Steve's back for support. He shifted between the trees and got close to the car, three Hydra agents inside. Without wasting any more time, I jumped from the bike onto the car and pushed off the guy in the backseat, doing the same to the other two.

"Hawk, Widow, I got you a ride." I spoke to my earpiece, while sitting in the drivers seat to take over the wheels. A quick nod to Steve still driving next to me, and I took a turn, looking for an open space where Nat and Clint could drop off of the Quinjet. "Right underneath you." I said, and the two jumped off of the jet into the car, Natasha taking my place behind the steering-wheel.

There was a loud roar in the distance, sounding louder than the explosions that broke through the forest, signaling that Bruce had hulked out. "They're keeping the Scepter in the castle up the mountain." Natasha said as she drove back to the battlefield. I shot with both my guns whoever tried to stop us from our right, while Clint shot his arrows on our left. "Blockade at our twelve." We braced ourselves and, as soon as Nat gave a sharp turn to the vehicle, the three of us jumped out, weapons ready to take down more enemies.

 _"Shit!"_ Tony's voice came into my ear, really pissed off.

I ran through the trees, taking down more Hydra agents as they tried to shoot with the weapons powered by the Scepter. _"Language!"_ Steve said to a cursing Tony. I chuckled at the thought of the billionaire's face, my arm closing around someone's neck to keep them in place as a shield. "I don't know about you, but this is taking way longer than I thought." I said to the team in the comm. "Someone's gotta get to that Scepter before Strucker decides to run with it."

 _"Wait a second. No one else is gonna deal with the fact that Cap just said 'language'?"_ Tony insisted on the fact, voice giving off the impression that he was still bewildered.

I looked around the trees, there was no one near me, only the sound of distant explosions and pained yells. For some reason I was already out of breath, a strange feeling from this morning making its way back in my body. I wasn't at my fullest, and it bothered me. "Just think how you'll get into that castle." I said into the comm, starting to move my feet at a fast pace into the snow, towards Steve's position.

 _"I know."_ Steve replied to Tony, then sighed heavily and lowered his voice. _"It just slipped out."_ I saw my boyfriend standing between the trees, one Hydra car crushed with his motorbike not too far away. I waved my hand at him and he nodded, before my expression changed when I suddenly felt a fast swish behind me, a gust of air moving past me and almost knocking me down. My eyes moved back to Steve, who had just been hit by something, but he fell back on his feet without getting hurt. His blue irises looked back at me to make sure that I wasn't hurt, feet hurrying to my position. "Did you see that?" He asked me, hand reaching up to touch my right upper arm. I nodded in response, carefully looking around for the person that crossed our path. "We have an Enhanced in the field."

"And he's fast." I added, receiving a frown from Steve. "I think I saw a guy, or a blur of a guy."

 _"Clint's hit!"_ Nat yelled in the earpiece, my insides clenching at her bad news. Steve noticed the worry in my eyes and we started running to their position, my heart beating harshly against my ribcage, fearing for the life of my best friend. I parted ways with Steve when more enemies appeared in front of us and he told me to go assist Clint and Nat. He was laying on the ground, groans of pain escaping his mouth as he struggled to breath.

I crouched next to him and Nat moved her hands from the wound to show me the damage. "You're gonna be okay, you hear me?" The palm of my right hand rested on his forehead, a horrible flashback making me shiver when I remembered our old mission in Egypt, when he had almost died. I exchanged a worried glance with Nat, who drew out her gun an shot down two agents behind me. "We have to evac him."

The redhead nodded, then stood up to look around. There were too many people coming our way. "We're locked down out here." She said into her earpiece.

Clint closed his hand tightly around mine, shivering on the ground. "Hey, it's alright, we're gonna get you to safety..."

He shook his head lightly, eyes fixed on me. "I want to stick an arrow into that guy's eye."

I chuckled at his words, putting more pressure on his wound as he let out a cough, followed by more groans. Just who was that guy? Could he be one of the civilians that volunteered for Hydra's experimentations? "Thor is on his way, I'll go get Banner." Nat informed me, green eyes glancing at her wounded friend. "Hang in there." She left to look for Bruce and, after a couple of minutes, Thor landed close to our position, hurrying to lift up Clint and get him on the Quinjet. This was supposed to be an in an out operation, how could it go that wrong?

I drew out my guns and pointed the tips at the soldiers nearing me, shooting them down one by one, or at least until the magazine clicked empty and I had to hide behind a tree. "Please, someone tell me we're leaving." I spoke, but no one replied. My breath hitched in my throat as a bullet hit the trunk of the tree close to my head, my body immediately ducking down on the ground.

 _"We have a second enhanced. Female. Do not engage."_ Steve notified the team, voice sounding too low.

More stray bullets came my way and I shot up on my feet, running fast away through the trees, unknown direction. I didn't know how long I ran without stopping, but when I didn't hear any more sounds behind me, I slowed down my pace, glancing around to make sure that no one was there. _"Viks, where are you?"_ Natasha asked me. _"We're on the jet._

I took in a deep breath and looked up at the sky, through the tree branches trying to spot the aircraft, but saw nothing. "Uh, somewhere in the forest?" I replied, unsure how far I had move from the battlefield. "I was surrounded and had to act fast. Can you track down the signal of the earpiece?"

 _"We got you. Stay right there."_ After her message, I leaned against the trunk of a tree and closed my eyes, more fatigue taking me over. What was happening to me? I had not felt that drained out since the Battle of New York, and even then it took me the full use of my powers to wear me out. I closed my eyes as my breathing was coming to a normal pace finally, heart slowing down its rhythmical pounding and my head felt light once again.

 

As soon as we were back in New York, in the recently renamed Stark Tower to Avengers Tower, Clint was handed over to Doctor Cho's cures. After making sure that he was in good hands, I went back to Steve and mine shared apartment, throwing my body under the water in the shower to try and relieve some of the tension in my body. My whole body was aching, something quite unusual, but then pushed the thought aside when I got out of the shower. Steve had just gotten back from the lab where Clint was being treated, taking off his Captain America suit, preparing to get in the shower. "He's holding up pretty well, don't worry." He reassured me about my friend's conditions and I nodded, then Steve picked up a data-pad from the bed and showed me a page with some intel that Tony retrieved from Hydra's database.

While he was in the shower, I sat on the bed scrolling through the information of the experimentations that some test subjects went through, my eyes locking on the pictures of a before and after of a young guy. In the first picture, his hair was brown, but in the next one, it had turned white. He was the _blur_ that had attacked Steve and Clint in Sokovia. "What do you think?" My eyes looked up at Steve drying his wet blonde hair with a towel, water dripping down his toned chest. 

My pupils traveled further down, but felt a bit disappointed as I saw a white towers hanging tightly around his waist, which covered his male parts. "I think you should come here and let me take that off." I smirked playfully, giving him a wicked glance.

Steve chuckled, coming to sit beside me and he looked down at the data-pad in my hands. "Hill says these two volunteered for Hydra's experiments." He tapped on the screen and the picture of the guy appeared, beside him a girl his age.

"Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, twins." He said. I couldn't take my eyes off of them. "You look as young as them." Steve pointed out, my brow furrowing at his words, then shook my head.

"I may look young, Steve, but the truth is that I don't age." I replied with my brows arched, still looking at the pictures.

"Are you ever going to tell me how old are you?" Steve insisted, and I shifted my eyes from the screen onto him.

I thought about it for a moment. "Alright, I'll give you a hint. I'm older than you are." His brow furrowed, softly gasping. "Uh-uh, no more questions about my age." I said quickly, interrupting him before he could ask me more. That was an absolute no-no topic, I hated thinking about my past, way before the 1900s. I stood up from the edge of the bed and locked the device before setting in down on the nightstand, a long yawn escaping my mouth.

Steve was still looking at me, a playful grin on his face. "Are you tired?"

I stepped closer to him and picked up the towel that was hanging around his shoulders, discarding it onto the floor to rest the palms of my hands there. His hands went immediately onto my hips, the towel around my body loosening dangerously. "Depends... Did you have something in mind?" Yes, I was feeling worn out, but I knew that hungry look in his eyes too well, and I wasn't going to turn down the offer.

He nodded with a seductive look, urging me to straddle his lap with his strong arms around my waist. "Actually, I have." I leaned down and kissed him passionately, snaking my arms around his shoulders as he pulled me down on the mattress with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Raise your hands up if you'd like to see a naughty Steve in bed.
> 
>  
> 
> Leave comments and kudos to support the work and show some love for the author ♡
> 
>  
> 
> lol I forgot to mention that this series has been up for 2 years now, so happy anniversary! *CONFETTI*


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Contains **smut** and **swearing**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Considering the fact that I won't be in town for the weekend, I decided to finish this chapter and post it a little early. I've got a shit ton of stuff to study, God know how I'm gonna make it.
> 
> It's longer than the other chapters and I hope you like it!
> 
> * * *
> 
> I wanted to insert a Bruno Mars reference at the beginning, but then out of doubt searched for the year of the release of the song and saw that it came out in 2016. *sigh* oh the trouble when the years don't match, but I still put in a slight quote.
> 
> There's some **swearing** and **smut** in this chapter.
> 
> Translation from Russian to English (please, take not that I'm not an actual Russian native speaker, so some of these translations might be wrong, but as a slavic person whose first language is Serbian, I try to be as accurate as possible since I recognize some words):  
> 1)Ya khotel tebya ves' den' = I've wanted you all day.  
> 2)Ya khochu byt' na vershine = I want to be on top  
> 3)Eto dolzhno byt' nezakonnym = This should be illegal.  
> 3)Yebat' = Fuck  
> If some of these aren't correct or need fixing, please tell me in the comments and I will edit ASAP.

"How do I look?" I twirled on my toes to show Steve the new dark blue dress for tonight's party and he looked up from his book, whilst laying on the bed with his back against the headboard. "It's Versace." I said with a satisfied grin as I run my hands from my hips to my chest, cupping my braless boobs.

"I would like to see the Versace on the floor." The sides of his lips curved up as his eyes narrowed wickedly.

I gasped whilst bringing my right hand over my chest for some drama. "Oh, Captain, you make my heart flutter!" I said, climbing on the bed on all fours and crawled to him until I straddled his lap, the hem of the skirt slipping further up my thighs.

His fingers traced the bare skin on my thighs softly, the back of his head resting against the headboard as he smiled at me. "The color suits you, though."

I thought about it for a moment, unconsciously biting my bottom lip, which he noticed right away. "And you're not saying that just because it's your favorite color? Or the color of your Captain America suit? Or the color of most of your shir-?" Suddenly, he leaned in and kissed me to shut me up, his hands ran up my back and his fingers found the zipper, slowly starting to pull it down. "We're gonna be late..." I murmured after parting my lips from his to catch our breaths.

"Hmm?" He just smiled contently. Something was odd, but I liked the fact that he was being all touchy-feely. His lips connected with my jawline, leaving a trail of kisses down my neck until he met the fabric of the dress, where he groaned lightly. "Can I take it off? We still have a lot of time." I chuckled, looking down to see that his fingers were tugging at the hem of my skirt and I shifted a little with my ass to let him take the dress off of me. My breasts bounced in front on his eyes and his smile widened before nuzzling his face between them. For some reason I felt them more tender as he gently cupped them in his hands. "Is it just my impression or do they look bigger?" Steve pointed out, blue irises looking up at me.

I furrowed my brow and looked down in confusion as he moved away his hands to let me see. "Do they? I haven't noticed at all." I tapped my fingers on his clothed chest and twitched my lips. "What I have noticed, though, is that you're still dressed, and it's bothering me."

"Well, let me take care of that for you..." Steve replied, rolling me onto my back as he settled between my legs and stripped down his casual clothing. "Ya khotel tebya ves' den'." He smirked again after saying that in a not so good Russian, but it still made my insides all tingly.

"And does Mr. Sexy know to say something else equally alluring?" I asked him, and he lowered his body on top of mine, skin so close to mine yet not touching.

With only a breath away from my lips, he looked straight into my eyes and spoke out, again in Russian. "Ya khochu byt' na vershine." It sounded more like an order than anything else, which made me giggle in a delightful anticipation for what was coming next. Did Natasha teach him all those words or did he search the Internet by himself to surprise me?

The only piece of clothing that was separating me from his naked parts were my panties, which he didn't waste any more time and slid them down my legs to expose my already wet folds, eager to feel him inside of me. I moaned as soon as his lips connected with the skin on my left thigh, my head thrown back onto the mattress, wishing he would get to it faster, but Steve just kept on teasing me. Each time his lips would come close to my folds, my breath would hitch, but then he'd move away again. "Oh, eto dolzhno byt' nezakonnym..." I breathed out while covering my eyes with my forearms.

"What was that?" Steve asked me, my fingers slipping through his blonde locks to urge him to be faster. He took the hint and finally lowered his tongue onto my clit, flicking it quite skillfully. My back arched at the beautiful feeling and I moaned louder, saying his name in between mewls.

My phone vibrated on the nightstand and I groaned at the abrupt interrupting, even though Steve didn't stop his ministrations. "Gimme just a second, love..." I said, extending my arm to grab the phone, but it was too far away, so I concentrated on the object for a long second and it lifted from the surface, flying slowly into my hand. How nice to have some powers, isn't it? "Nat?" I answered the call, trying to keep my cool whilst Steve worked magic between my legs.

 _"Are you in the gym?"_ She asked me. _"You sound out of breath."_

Oh, crap. "Just lifting some weights..." I lied, bringing my hand to cover my mouth as Steve bit the inside of my thigh, eyes devilishly locking with mine. "What's up?" I forced myself to ask her.

 _"Okay, should I wear the green dress or the black and white one?"_ She asked me, sounding very serious about the right choice. "Wait, but if I wear green, will it be too obvious that I like Bruce?"

An almost inaudible moan escaped my lips and I furrowed my brow at Steve, who had just slipped two fingers inside of me. "Black and white one definitely!" I said quickly, taking in a sharp breath as the pace of the thrusting increased.

 _"Viktoria, what's happening?"_ She asked me, and I tried really hard not to moan again. Steve chuckled between my legs, enjoying the weird situation. _"Are you and Steve having sex while you're on the phone with me?"_

"Yes!" I shrieked, more to my boyfriend than to her.

 _"Did he at least use the words that I taught him?"_ Ah, there was the master of the dirty talk.

"Tasha, please- we'll talk about it later!" I said, eyes looking down the hard member that Steve was about to slip into me.

 _"Alright, black and white one it is. Have fun, lovebirds."_ She giggled on the other side of the line and hung up the call, the phone immediately slipping out of my hand as Steve pushed inside of me.

"Yebat'!" I whined, feeling him all the way inside of me. He didn't waste time and started pounding fast right away.

"Language." I chuckled at him, remembering how it had slipped him out while we were on the battlefield. He actually didn't mind when I cursed occasionally, but he still didn't like it when it happened in public, or someone other than me did it.

Steve snaked his muscled arms under my legs and lifted me up a little bit to get a better angle as he thrusted into me, hitting that same spot over and over again just to see me lose my mind. "Oh, Steve-" I slipped my right hand between my legs and started massaging my clit to come faster, the other hand cupping one of my bouncing breasts. 

Steve threw his head back, a guttural groan coming out of his mouth as he felt my walls clench around his length. I came with a high-pitched moan, squirming beneath him. He didn't slow down his pounding, but as it became sloppier, I knew he was about to come too, so I swiftly managed to roll him down on the mattress on his back, then straddled his lap and moved my hips back and forth. Steve moaned whilst lifting his arms above his head, he tried to keep his eyes open, but when he came inside of me, he couldn't help but let out a shaky moan from the pleasure. I felt his seed filling me up and another orgasm made my walls tighten around him, my hips quickly slowing down their movement.

Steve pulled me down, while still inside of me, and gave me a passionate kiss, breathing in my scent. We parted after a short moment, tired eyes gazing into each other and we let out some soft giggles.

 

We were late for the party, of course that would happen. Steve tucked his blue shirt into his pants while we were in the elevator and shot me a content smile. "Did you know Clint has a girlfriend?" He asked me.

"What? No. I would have known about it if it was true." I scoffed. "Who told you?"

"Even Nat said he has a girlfriend." Steve said, brow furrowed. "You... didn't know?"

"...And I'm confused." I replied with a light shake of my curly head. "Guess I'll have to look into it." I said while lacing my arm around his and we headed out of the elevator, where the party was taking place. People were dancing and having fun, as usual during Tony's parties, though I was bothered to be the only one who didn't know about Clint's girlfriend. We met with Natasha and Sam, Steve left to go play the billiard with him and I went to the bar to talk to her. "So, I heard that Clint got himself a girlfriend..." I said casually after ordering a non alcoholic drink.

"You're not drinking any alcohol tonight?" The redhead tried to deviate the conversation.

"I don't feel like drinking tonight..." I replied with an arched brow. "So, this girlfriend... How's she like?"

"I don't know, I haven't really met her." Natasha said while looking at the barman, who served us our orders. "But he said she's kind, funny... Oh, and very beautiful."

I gazed at her for a long while. "Okay. That sounds fake... But okay." I said quite taken aback, then picked up my blueberries drink and had a sip. By the way she avoided looking at me while talking about this woman, I couldn't help but feel lied to. "Did I never tell you how I thought you and Clint were a thing for a while?"

Her eyes moved to look at me from her peripheral vision, a slight tilt with her head and she didn't deny it. "Apart from everyone thinking the same thing, what made you change your mind about us?"

I blinked a few times, mostly staring blankly in front of me and shrugged. "Dunno. I can't really remember." Maybe because you would have looked good together? I thought, points to the power-couple.

 

The party was going on smoothly, everyone had fun and chatted happily. I didn't know most of Tony's guests, but that didn't matter, as long as nobody asked me about my personal life. It made my night to finally see Natasha flirt with Bruce, she told me some time ago that she found him 'adorkable', on which I agreed. 

The women that were chatting around me asked me question, but I was too focused looking at Steve, who approached Bruce at the bar after Nat left. He smirked and told something the doctor. I stretched my enhanced hearing and tried to ignore the music or the chatter around me, focusing only on them. Sure, that was eavesdropping, but it was fun to see Bruce flustered.

"I've seen her flirt, up close." Steve said while grabbing a beer from behind the counter and moved closer to the doctor, I furrowed my brow while sipping at my drink, almost chocking on it. "This ain't that." Bruce scoffed at Steve's words. "Look, as maybe the world's leading authority on waiting too long, don't." He paused. "You both deserve a win." Steve nodded his head lightly and walked away, while Bruce furrowed his brow.

Bruce looked up and followed cap with his gaze. "What do you mean 'up close'?"

I arched my brows and finished my drink in one gulp, excusing myself from the group of women that kept me company and went after Steve. I found him sipping at his beer, while standing next to a window and looking outside, he took a moment to enjoy the view. "I know it's rude to eavesdrop," I said casually, standing next to him and gazing outside for a moment before turning my hazel eyes to his blue ones, "but 'up close' sounds more than just flirting to me."

Steve shook his head after taking another sip from his bottle and snaked his right arm around my shoulder, drawing me closer to him. "Now, are you jealous, love?"

"Of Tasha? Never." I replied with a soft smile while looking at him, he had a soft smile too. He leaned closer and pecked my lips.

"Let's go back to the party." Steve said. "Sam wants to challenge you at the pool table."

 

Most of the guests were gone, while the Avengers and a few others were gathered and seated comfortably on the couches. Steve sat between me and Thor, who laughed while making a toast with Cap.

"But it's a trick." Commented Clint, twirling a stick between his fingers, Maria on his right, while Natasha was speaking silently with Bruce. Doctor Helen Cho was resting tiredly against the backrest of the couch, maybe she didn't get enough sleep the previous night. Considering her hard work, she didn't spend much time out of her lab.

"No, no, it's much more than that." Retorted Thor, both Steve and I shared a smirk.

I snaked my right arm around Steve's back and relaxed my chin on his left shoulder. "Then who could lift it besides you, Mighty Thor?"

Clint raised his arms towards Mjölnir and, in a mocking way, said: "Ah, whosoever be he worthy shall haveth the power." Thor, Steve and I chuckled. "Whatever, man! It's a trick." Clint just couldn't believe the fact that only Thor could lift the hammer.

Thor laughed again and nodded towards Mjölnir, extending his arm. "Please, be my guest."

"Whoa, someone's throwing challenges around." I said laughing and stood up from the couch, after I took off my heels. "Please, keep going while I'm grabbing some water." I could handle alcohol since I had an enhanced metabolism, but tonight I was feeling pretty sick even though I did not have any.

"You okay?" Asked Steve holding lightly my wrist for a second and I nodded.

"Do you want some?" He shook his head and I moved away from the group, towards the bar. I leaned against the counter while drinking from the bottle of water and smiled at the scene. All of my friends were dorks, that I was pretty damn sure of. Tony was about to take on the challenge and, very confident, winked at me. "Oh, Tony, don't embarrass yourself!" I yelled, to which everyone laughed.

"It's physics, Alkaeva." Retorted Stark.

Banner repeated incredulous. "Physics."

"Right, so, if I lift it, I then rule Asgard?" Tony asked Thor, closing his fingers around the handle of the hammer.

Thor nodded. "Yes, of course."

The billionaire tried to lift Mjölnir and grunted when he couldn't make it, so he went to grab one of the gloves of his armor and tried to lift it again, not succeeding. Rhodey joined him and they both pulled with gloved hands but the hammer still didn't move. Bruce got up and tried to lift it, groaning loudly till he pretended to Hulk out. Nobody laughed but I did chuckle from behind the counter.

Then it was Cap's turn and he went to try it. I promptly pulled out my phone from a pocket on my dress and turned on the camera, filming Steve. I zoomed on him as his hands gripped the handle and he pulled up. My eyes widened when Mjölnir flinched a little and Steve let go for a slight moment. I zoomed the camera on the Asgardian, Thor's face was priceless, almost scared that his friend could actually make it. Steve tried to lift it a second time but couldn't make it and shook his head laughing.

Probably, I was the only one who knew that he actually had pretended that he could not lift it, but I said nothing. I switched off the camera and put the phone back in the pocket of the dress, then walked back to the group from behind the counter, to sit next to Steve and kissed him on his left cheek, exchanging a knowing smile.

Bruce looked over at Natasha and addressed her. "And, Widow?"

She shook her head replying, then took a sip of her beer. "Oh, no, no. That's not a question I need answered." Just because she believed she could not lift the hammer, it didn't mean that she wasn't worthy, I thought.

Maria tilted her head and smirked. "Alkaeva?" She nodded to Mjölnir.

She caught me off guard, but I did expect someone to ask me to join the challenge. "Thanks, but I'm not interested in ruling Asgard." On the contrary, I knew perfectly I would never be able to lift Mjölnir.

I got lost in my mind for a short moment and suddenly heard Maria point out some 'bad language word', Steve's eyes immediately moving to look at Stark. "Did you tell everyone about that?" He knew that the joke would go on for a while.

"Don't worry, Steve." I patted his shoulder. "Give it a few days and he'll forget about it."

"I hope so..." He murmured, pecking the back of my hand which was resting on his left shoulder.

Thor stood up from his place on the couch and looked at everyone. He took Mjölnir and twisted it in his hand. "I have a simpler theory. You're all not worthy."

Everyone groaned, sneering at his comment. "Oh, come on!"

There was an abrupt high-pitched noise and we had to cover our ears. To me, it felt quite stronger and the pain had me curse under my breath. It stopped as soon as it began and someone, or something, spoke to us. " _Worthy._ " One of Tony's peacekeeping robots walked stumbling into the room, it had some missing parts, but his voice was low and rough. "No. How could you be worthy? You're all killers."

My breath hitched and I gripped Steve's arm, he promptly spoke to Tony to shut down the droid. "Stark."

Tony took out his pad and tried to give the shut down command but it didn't work. "Jarvis." He called for the AI but he didn't respond.

Meanwhile, the robot continued. "I'm sorry, I was asleep. Or I was a-dream."

"Reboot Legionnaire OS. We got a buggy suit." Stark tried again.

"There was this terrible noise. And I was tangled in... In... Strings." The robot motioned with his functioning arm. I had to kill the other guy. He was a good guy."

I had a feeling that this was about to get out of hand pretty quickly as the droid spoke, and the fact that it had just killed someone made it worse. I let go of Steve's arm and turned on the defensive just in case stuff went south. 

The droid played a track and everyone heard Stark's voice. " _I see a suit of armor around the world._ "

Tony was bewildered. "Ultron."

"In the flesh. Or, no, not yet." Spoke Ultron.

I sensed some commotion behind Ultron, to be more exact, behind the wall. It sounded like buzzing of other similar machines. "Steve... Something's coming." I whispered, tugging lightly at his shirt, but he just looked at me and tensed up when I nodded behind the robot. Right as Ultron finished talking, more robots flew right through the wall behind him shooting blasts around. Steve grabbed me roughly and held me close to his chest, whilst kicking the coffe table in midair to use it as a shield. Something struck us and we flew backwards, hitting hard onto the floor, though I didn't feel much pain since I had landed on top of him and then quickly rolled onto the floor, before another droid could attack us.

Everyone was scattered around, someone firing shots from guns. My first thought went to Banner, hoping he wouldn't turn green, but as soon as I saw him with Nat, my eyes looked around for Doctor Cho, who wasn't able to defend herself. The floor was covered by debris and broken glass, and I was barefoot. Crouched on the ground, I looked around for Cho and saw her behind a piano. I tried to crawl towards her but a droid grabbed be from behind and lifted me in the air. I gritted my teeth as I felt its fingers digging into my blue dress, so I unleashed a wave of energy from my body and the bot fell apart, letting me go and this time I managed to land on my feet. "Doctor Cho!" I yelled as I saw one of the droids raise its hand to her head, but soon let it down. While it was distracted, I sprinted towards it and jumped on its half body, locking the mechanical neck between my right arm and I tightened the grip, until the head detached from the shoulders.

"Are you hurt, Doctor?" I asked the woman and she shook her head. "Come with me." She stood up from behind the piano and followed me. My palms turned a bright blue color and I shot the next droids that approached us, while the last one that appeared, was cut in half by Steve's shield.

Suddenly the commotion died down and only the droid named Ultron was still up on his legs. "That was dramatic. I'm sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn't think it through. You want to protect the world but you don't want it to change. How is humanity saved if it's not allowed to evolve?" Ultron crouched down and picked up a droid. "With these? These puppets." He smashed its head throwing it away. "There's only one path to peace. The Avengers' extinction." Thor had enough of the hostile robot and threw Mjölnir at Ultron, breaking it in many pieces, until it stopped working.

"Well," I breathed out, "that was completely unexpected..." I lost balance and slouched down on the floor whilst holding my belly. My head became too heavy and the room started spinning around, I was feeling as if I couldn't take in enough air.

Steve hurried towards me and helped me sit up, holding me close to his chest with one arm around my back. "Viktoria, are you hurt?" He asked me panicked, no visible signs of wounds.

Why was I feeling so worn out? We locked eyes and I reassured him. "I'll be fine, I just need to catch my breath." Steve picked me up bridal style and I snaked my arms around his shoulders. "What was that all about?" I looked at Tony, but he didn't reply, his face was contorted in some kind of apparent guilt. Whatever had just happened, it wasn't any good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo was Steve too naughty, or not enough? lol I guess you all can tell it by now, but Viktoria is pregnant! Oblivious girl, it didn't cross her mind yet.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's midnight, I'm tired.
> 
> Since I worked hard and got very good results, plus studied some more today, as a reward, I finished another chapter. I'm afraid I'll have to take a pause from writing and focus on studying for my upcoming exams, but I hope you will still leave comments and questions, or thoughts, which I'll be very happy to answer anytime. 
> 
> ♡ So, please, don't be afraid to talk to me, I encourage you to do so ♡
> 
>  
> 
> Whoops there I threw some mood swings for Viktoria. I don't really recall the exact same things that happened in the movie, so I fear something might be a bit off in the description, anyway, I hope I'm not making to many timeline jumps.

I touched my forehead with the back of my hand and felt that the skin was burning once again. The temperature of my body was probably a little too high, and even if I tried to stabilize it like I usually did in different environments, it wasn't working. Natasha and I changed into more comfortable clothes, then walked back to the lab where the team was gathered. 

"Viktoria, is something wrong?" Natasha asked me a few steps down the hallway before we entered the lab. "I'm really worried now. You don't look fine at all."

I stopped in my tracks and turned to look at her, taking in a deep breath then sighed. "I have a fever." I told her, her hand immediately going to touch my forehead as she furrowed her brow. "And it's not normal. I never get sick."

She retracted her hand and glanced at the people in the lab, eyes catching a glimpse of Steve. "Did you tell him? I don't want to jump down to conclusions, but..." Nat trailed off whilst crossing her arms over her chest. "It's probably from exhaustion." She shrugged, but she didn't sound convinced. "Even super-people have their bad days."

I chuckled, shaking my head at her and laced my arm around hers, starting towards the lab once again. "Let's just see if someone has any idea of what has happened tonight."

If anyone had a knife in their pocket, they could cut the intense tension into the room. I tapped lightly on a computer with Nat close to me and just slumped my shoulders, feeling a headache pounding in my brain. "There's nothing. Ultron has deleted whatever was on our servers."

Natasha moved her eyes from the screen and turned to the team. "He's been in everything. Files, surveillance. Probably knows more about us than we know about each other." I didn't like the sound of that one bit. This thing... It wasn't like Jarvis, this AI was all but friendly.

Just when we managed to retrieve the Scepter from Hydra's hands, it was gone yet again. Thor's arguing with Tony and Bruce made the ache in my head heavier. "Ultron's calling us out." Steve said, looking at everyone in the room. "And I'd like to find him before he's ready for us."

"You said the bot went North?" I turned to look at Thor with a tired expression and he nodded, pupils shifting to Steve immediately.

He exchanged a silent thought with me. "The world's a big place. Let's start making it smaller."

"Easier said than done..." I murmured, turning back to the computer and begun typing on the keyboard, but Natasha gently laid her hand of top of my shoulder and called for my attention.

"Viktoria, why don't you go and rest?" She whispered. "I'll take care of it."

For some reason I started feeling powerless, even useless considering that I wasn't feeling at my top-self. I had to give in to her pleading eyes and nodded in defeat, standing up from the chair to let her seat down. "Steve?" I called for him, some eyes turning to glance at me. "Can you come with me for a moment?" He followed me outside of the lab and lightly furrowed his brow, arms crossed over his chest. "I'm not feeling very well." I told him in a low voice, my fingers entwined nervously. "Don't let them stress too much about the stupid bot. We'll find him soon, and the Scepter too."

"You gonna be okay?" Steve asked me, and I smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, love. Nat says I might have exhausted myself. If we're going to catch Ultron, I need to rest for tomorrow." I told him, but his jaw clenched out of concern, and maybe some doubt.

"Viks," Steve pulled me closer to him, eyes gazing deeply into mine, "it's been a few days since you started feeling sick. If something's wrong and you're not telling me, I won't have any other choice but hold you back."

I crossed my arms over my chest and averted his gaze for a moment, biting down at my bottom lip. I knew he only meant well, but I wasn't feeling that sick either. I looked back at him. "I'm not keeping anything from you, if that's what you want to hear." I didn't mean to sound so annoyed, but I was. He didn't say anything for a long time, just gave me _the_ look. It pained me when Steve just gazed at me silently without uttering a word, anything would've been better. "Well?" I urged him to speak. "Oh, God, I can't believe you're still giving me the judgmental look!" I curse under my breath. If I've been calm and collected before, now I was pissed off.

"Viktoria, this is not the time-" Steve tried to calm me down, but in vain.

"No!" I shook my head vigorously. "It clearly isn't. So let's just pretend forget about this." I turned in my heels and started walking down the hallway.

"Where are you going?" Steve asked me. What had gotten into me suddenly? 

"To order a fucking pizza!" I snarled like a ferocious beast. A hungry beast.

 

I bit down on the last slice of pizza, sitting on the sofa in the living room of my apartment, where I hadn't slept in a while. The morning light had already filtered through the tall windows, and I hadn't even slept one bit. Someone knocked on the front door a few times and I sighed, already feeling awful for how I reacted in front of Steve last night. "It's open." I said, then saw the door opening from where I was sat.

Steve entered the apartment and closed the door behind him. His blue irises lowered on the three empty pizza boxes just laying on top of the coffee table. "Are you still mad?" That was the first thing that he had asked me since last night.

I shook my head. "I'm sorry. I might have overreacted." I said whilst chewing on the food, a clear remorse in my voice.

He sat down beside me on the sofa and gave me and apologetic look. "No, it's fine... I shouldn't have said that in the first place."

I swallowed down the food in my mouth and just gazed at him, then brought the last slice of pizza to his lips and nodded to it. He took the hint and took a huge bite. "See? Pizza fixes everything."

He chuckled after swallowing and leaned in to kiss me, a quick peck on the lips. "Wish it could fix Ultron." Steve said. I could tell that the moral of the team wasn't at its best, and it affected him too. 

Only after a short while I noticed that he had on the pants of Cap's suit. "Did you guys find him?" Steve nodded. "Then what are we waiting for?" I discarded the pizza crust into one of the empty boxes and stood up on my bare feet.

"Can you promise me something?" Steve's hands closed on my hips, turning my body to face him while he was still sat on the sofa. "Nat and I spoke about you not feeling well, we both think you should stay back." I was about to say something, but he continued. "That doesn't mean you can't come with us. You're coming, but you'll keep Bruce company on the Quinjet." 

I closed my slightly gaping mouth and then shrugged. "Okay, but I'm piloting."

 

I had been a while since the team had sneaked in, but there were no news from them. I was sat in the pilot's seat, trying to set up the secondary channels since the first one went down. "I think he's messing with our communications..." I muttered to Bruce, who was pacing behind me, hoping there would be no need for him to engage in battle.

"Is it bad?" Bruce asked me, abruptly stopping his pacing and turned to look at my back.

"Well, if they don't send us a signal, then someone has to go and check out the situation." I tried switching back from the secondary channel to the first one, and an intermitting sound came out of the speakers, muffled groans and the sound of gun shots were heard, the rest was indistinct. "Guy, what's happening?" Nobody replied after I spoke into my earpiece.

Bruce stepped closer to a control panel and pressed a button to speak to them. "Guys, is this a Code Green?" More indistinct chatters followed and we exchanged a worried glance, before I gave command to the panel to open the back ramp of the Quinjet. "Please, tell me it's not Code Green..." Bruce whispered, mostly to himself, and I couldn't help but feel bad for him. He wasn't a bad person, not at all, but the Other Guy... His temper could be tremendous and unpredictable.

We gave a quick look outside, catching a glimpse of Iron Man trying to take down Ultron. _"Viktoria?"_ Clint's voice sounded in my earpiece, even if barely audible. _"I hate to ask but... I need you to come here."_

My heart skipped a beat at the thought that something might have happened. "I'm on my way." I replied to him and patted Bruce on the shoulder. "Stay right here, okay?" I ran down the ramp and headed towards the ship that the guys were onto, guns already out and ready to shoot down whatever threat may cross my path. I didn't waste time looking around carefully, just walked straight on through the entrance, but no one was around. "Clint, where are you?"

 _"I'm with Tasha. The Witch did something to her, it's as if she's in some kind of trance."_ He replied.

As soon as I reached an open space area, I saw that the enemy had been defeated, but something odd caught my eyes. Steve didn't have his helmet on, just stumbled around on his feet, his eyes... His irises weren't the same blue color that I loved, instead, they were shining with a bright red color. A glance above me and I saw that Thor was in a similar state, absentmindedly walking on a ramp. "I found Steve." I informed Clint, a deep crease between my eyebrows. "I think she did something to Thor and Steve too." After holstering the two guns on my hips, I took some careful steps towards my boyfriend, trying to snap him out of his trance by calling his name, yet nothing happened. "Steve?" My hands carefully lift up to cup his cheeks and just stop him from roaming around mindlessly. "Steve." I said once again, but his eyes were still red. I felt a strange tingle in the tips of my fingers, a soft blue light reacting to the Witch's magic.

Suddenly, I found myself in an enormous hall, old music was playing live and people were dancing, laughter filled the space as a sign reading 'victory' hung from the ceiling. "It's an illusion..." I whispered, starting to walk through the cheerful people, when they disappeared all at once. "Steve!" I gasped, seeing him standing right in the middle of the dance floor with someone. He was dressed in his old military uniform, staring blankly in front of him as his chest heaved in distress, she was talking to him. I squinted my eyes to try and recognize her, finally remembering that face. "Steve, it's just an illusion. Peggy isn't really here!" I spoke louder, his eyes shifting to look at me and she disappeared, only it wasn't me who he was directly looking at, it was another me. The look on the other me was impassive and cold, her strut was confident and she carried a shotgun in her hands, slowly pointing the tip at his chest ready to pull the trigger. I ran to Steve, roughly taking his cheeks between my hands and force him to look at me. "Wake up."

"Wake up." I repeated, the red from his eyes finally leaving place to that familiar ocean blue of his irises. He squinted his eyes, hands moving up to rest on top of mine on, his cheeks, and Steve furrowed his brow. He was back to normal and we were both outside of his mind. "Whatever you saw, it's not real."

Steve whispered. "It was for me..." He was hurt, I could see it in his eyes.

"I will never hurt you, you hear me?!" I pulled him in for a tight hug, trying to comfort him, but his whole body was stiff, barely able to react to my touch.

"Viks, we gotta go." I heard Clint say from a near door, holding Natasha in his arms. "Where's Thor?"

I pulled away from Steve, looking up to search for the Asgardian. He had stopped pacing and was looking down at us, same expression as Steve and Natasha's on his features. "I'm here." He replied confused.

 _"Natasha, I could really use a lullaby."_ Everyone heard Stark's voice through their comms, but no one except for me and Clint reacted. The three of them were in some kind of shock, unable to really process what was going on.

"That's not gonna happen. Not for a while." Clint replied to Tony and nodded to the exit.

 _"Foxy, I thought you were supposed to stay on the Quinjet with Bruce."_ Only after he said that did I realize that the Hulk had been the target from the start.

"Oh, no..." I murmured, feeling a bitter taste in my mouth. I couldn't help but feel responsible for what happened to Bruce, I really should have stayed behind with Bruce.

 _"Go back to the jet, I'll try an put the Angry Man to sleep."_ Tony urged us, Clint and I shared a nod.

 

We waited on board of the Quinjet until Tony had finally arrived in his badly damaged Hulk Buster suit. He quickly got on board with Bruce in his arms and Clint jumped in the pilot's seat, taking off into the air. There were was a terrible silence among the ones affected by the girl's powers, all they did fast stare in front of them without saying anything. Tony called Hill, who was back at the Avengers Tower, and she told us that it would be better to lay low at least until there were new trails to Ultron.

I sat beside Steve and held his hands between mine, thinking about what I had seen, trying to understand why that and not something else. Peggy, she too was part of the illusion, but I could not think of anything relevant to connect the dots. The people, the music, the clothes, the dance floor... Me. It wasn't just an illusion, those things were all part of Steve's life, his memories. It wasn't the truth, but neither imagination. My ears caught the sound of an irregular heartbeat, Steve's... Was he scared? His fingers entwined with mine absentmindedly, and I drew him closer to me, letting him rest his head on my shoulder. "I'm here, my love..." I murmured.

If Clint wanted to stick an arrow in Pietro Maximoff's eye, I wanted to use the same mind trick on his twin, Wanda. See if she'd like someone to play with her mind like a kid with a toy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, guess who's gonna find out about the baby in the next chapter. How do you think it'll go? *insert winky emoji here* ♡


	19. Baby America

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pregnancy news and sparkles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was extremely nervous today because of school. Also, there's a thunderstorm outside, hopefully I can get some nice sleep tonight (I love rain in general).
> 
> Anyway, I hope you like how this chapter turned out, I wasn't really sure about the outcome at first, but I'll let you be the judge of that (:
> 
> Love y'all ♡

After some long hours of flight spent in a rather terrible silence, Clint landed the Quinjet in a green field. As we stepped out onto the ground, Steve held my hand, and we followed Clint to what looked like a farmhouse. This didn't look like a safe house, I thought, it was... Too out in the open. I glanced up at the sky and saw that the sun had just come up after a few hours, probably still morning, wherever we were. I furrowed my brow while following them into the house, my fingers closing a bit tighter around Steve's hand.

"Honey? I'm home." I heard Clint say, and my mouth fell agape when I saw a woman with brown hair come from the kitchen into the living room. "Hi. Company. Sorry, didn't call ahead." The woman smiled at him and kissed him on the lips, then hugged him, her eyes moving to look at the people in her house.

The rest of us lined up in front of the two and just stared incredulously, Stark immediately commenting in disbelief. "This is an agent of some kind."

"Gentlemen, this is Laura." Our friend turned to look at us and introduced his wife.

My heart started beating faster. This wasn't just a girlfriend... "Hi..?" I uttered, my hand slipping out of Steve's grip.

"I know all of your names." Laura said, then chuckled shyly.

Suddenly, we heard fast footsteps approaching us and two kids appeared from another room, running to Clint. The kids had both brown hair and looked like a smaller version of my best friend, the boy was probably a few years older than his sister. "Dad!" He hugged them both tightly.

"Dad?!" I uttered again, turning my eyes to look at Steve in complete confusion, and he gave me a less shocked look.

"These are smaller agents." Tony commented again, brow furrowed at the sight of the kids.

"Did you bring Auntie Nat?" The small girl asked and turned to look at the group of people, as soon as she saw the redhead, she run up to her. Natasha picked her up and gave her a kiss on the cheek, walking to stand closer to Clint and Laura.

"Sorry for barging in on you." Spoke Steve, showing a kind smile.

"Yeah, we would have called ahead, but we were busy having no idea that you existed." If anyone could have said that, it was surely Tony.

I couldn't even process how I was feeling. This was huge, no... Unthinkable. Why did they never tell me about Clint's family? The older kid seemed to have been born, maybe, before we became friends, but that was years and years ago. "I don't understand." My head started to spin once again and I had to lean onto Steve, eyes fixed on the family.

"Is that Auntie Viktoria?" The girl whispered in Natasha's ears and gave me a shy smile.

"Yes, it is." The redhead nodded and put the kid down. "Go introduce yourself."

She walked up to me and held out her small hand. "Hi, my name is Lila."

I mentally slapped myself to get out of my shocked state and smiled to her, crouching down to her eye level and took her hand into mine, shaking softly. "Nice to finally meet you, Lila." The next thing that she did surprised me, or took me off guard, either way, she let go of my hand and threw her arms around my shoulder, giving me a hug, before she giggled and ran back to her parents.

I saw Natasha lean down touch Laura's belly and only then I noticed the huge belly bump, skillfully hidden under a large colorful t-shirt. "She's... Nathaniel." 

Natasha gasped lightly at the woman's words. "Traitor." She pointed playfully a finger at the unborn child.

This was too much to take in. Without second thought, I moved across the living room and exited the house, stepping in the garden to take in a deep breath. I was overwhelmed, incapable of thinking things through or understand why neither of my two best friends told me about this. "Oh, God!" I took in a sharp breath feeling nauseous and bent forward resting my hands on my knees.

"Viktoria?" I heard Steve's voice behind me, one hand resting on my back. "What's wrong?"

I was panting, quick shallow breaths. "I need to throw up." I muttered, moving my eyes to look at him.

Natasha appeared next to Steve and, as soon as she saw the state that I was in, she helped me stand straight and guided me back into the house, quickly moving to a door next to the stairs and opened it, revealing a bathroom. She told Steve to wait outside, thankfully, and I threw myself onto the toilet, throwing up whatever was in my stomach. Nat kneeled down beside me, promptly taking some toilet paper and handed it to me once I was done, to clean my lips. "When did the symptoms show up?" She asked me with a serious tone.

I coughed and covered my mouth with my hands, my throat burning. "A week or so..." I replied in a horse voice.

"Could you be..." Nat paused, my watery eyes fixed on her. "Pregnant?"

My mouth fell agape and I slouched back against the wall, staring at her in utter shock. "No, no, no, no..." How could she even think of that? I stopped to think about what had happened in the last few weeks, trying hard to remember when I had the last period, realization drowning on me. My hands went immediately to touch at my lower belly. "I know I never get sick, but how can I be sure that I'm pregnant?" By then I was sobbing softly, remembering how I've done some unhealthy and reckless things which could've affected the baby in a bad way. "This is a mess..."

Nat got closer to me immediately and put her hands on my knees. "Hey, look at me. Everything's gonna be fine, okay?" She tried to reassure me, then brought her fingers to my face to dry away the stray tears. "We're here for you. Don't be scared, okay?"

I shook my head slightly. "A child? Nat, you know what kind of person I am, what I've done. How can I ever raise a child when there's always a threat around the corner." It was really frustrating, I could not think of anything else but the wrong things that might happen along the way.

She was about to speak, but a knock sounded at the door behind her and she stood up to see who had knocked. Nat slowly unlocked the door and opened it a little, then moved it further apart to let the person inside. Laura saw me sitting on the ground with my back against the wall, close to the toilet and her expression seemed to change into one of understanding. She glanced at Natasha and the redhead closed the door once again. "I got you some clothes to change into." She said. Gosh, I barely knew her, and for her to see me that beaten made me feel even worse. 

Nat took in a deep breath and locked eyes with the woman, speaking in a low voice. "Do you still have those unused tests?"

"I might have one in the bathroom upstairs." Laura replied. "Bottom drawer of the cupboard under the sink." She gave Nat her clothes and the redhead exited the bathroom, leaving us alone. I stood up from the floor and flushed the toilet, stepping closer to the sink to wash my face and rinse my mouth. "Is it your first baby?" She asked me, and I nodded.

"It didn't even cross my mind for a second that I could be pregnant." I told her, and she handed me a nearby towel to dry my face. "Thanks..." I took in a deep breath and looked myself through the mirror above the sink, seeing puffy eyes and redness on my cheeks. A child should be something to rejoice for, then why was I feeling awful? "How did you and Clint know it was the right time to start a family?"

Laura leaned against the wall with her arms crossed over her chest, and smiled. "We didn't, it just happened. When Cooper was born, Clint cried like a baby. Even with our kind of life, we knew that together we could make it through anything." I looked at her and smiled softly. I was happy for my best friend, he had found someone important in his life and kept her close, even if most of the time they were thousands of miles apart. That love... I was slightly envious of their relationship.

"I'm back." We turned to look at Nat who swiftly entered the bathroom. She had changed from her combat suit into the clothes that Laura lent her. "I got it." Nat waved at a slim box in her hands, looking even more nervous than me. I bit my lower lip and slowly reached out to grab the box. "We'll wait outside."

"Wait-!" I panicked as soon as they moved to leave. "Can you stay, both of you? I'm really freaking out." The two looked at each other and then nodded to me, a soft smile on their features.

 

Lila was showing me her drawings, which were spread out on the coffee table in the living room. The light in the room was switched on, while outside the sky had already gone dark. "This is mommy, and this is daddy." She pointed at two figures on the paper. Even though she was very young, her drawing skills were already looking pretty good. Maybe she'd become an artist one day. "And these right here," she spread out another drawing, "are the Avengers." She giggled.

I smiled at her and picked up the drawing, looking at the seven people lined up with a smile on their faces. "This is your dad," I said and look at her for confirmation, to which Lila nodded, "this is Aunt Nat."

"Yep. This is you." She moved her finger across the paper, stopping on a woman with light brown hair, black suit.

"They're all beautiful, you know?" I told her, setting down the drawing and pulled her closer to me, leaning a bit to her ear. "Did you know that Captain America went to Art School?" I whispered and her expression lit up with surprise.

"Really?" She asked, looking behind the sofa to the kitchen, where Steve was sitting with the rest of the team, plus Fury, who I had idea why he was there in the first place. "Can you ask him to draw me a unicorn and sign it?" She whispered back and giggled.

"Promise." I held out my pinky and she closed her small one around mine. "Oh, you should definitely show this one to Natasha." I picked up one drawing from the pile, the one with a yellow butterfly on it, and handed it to Lila, she glanced at her mother sitting on a sofa next to us and the woman nodded.

"Ultron's mission is global destruction..." Fury said, looking at Natasha, then moved his good eye to everyone else in the room. 

I stood up from the sofa and stepped closer to Steve, laying the palm of my hand on his back. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, then relaxed them and snaked one arm around my shoulders. "Then how do we stop him?" I asked.

"Outwit the platinum bastard." Fury replied, sitting down at the dinner table.

Natasha smirked from her place at the table and looked over at Cap. "Steve doesn't like that kind of talk."

He arched his brows at the redhead and tilted his head. "You know what, Romanoff?"

My breath caught in my throat, and I bit my bottom lips. "Actually..." I started, but found myself at a loss for words. My heartbeat increased as soon as everyone's eyes were on me, making me feel too under the spotlight, but it was now or never. "I'm sorry, but don't count me in for the next mission." Apart from Laura and Natasha, no one seemed to understand why I had said that. Steve's arm retracted from around my shoulders and when I looked at him, he had a deep crease between his eyebrows. "You know how I haven't been feeling well lately, right?" A soft smile made its way on my features. "Well, I'm pregnant." Silence followed my statement, but I focused on Steve's reaction. He just stood there for a long second without anything, then his mouth fell agape.

"Does this mean we're having a Baby Avenger?" Tony broke the silence, staring at me. "Or Baby America. Yeah, Baby America sounds better." He quickly corrected himself when Steve shot him a death glare.

"Are you sure?" Steve asked me and I nodded. Unless those two bars on the test were lying, I was damn sure of it. He took in a long breath and rubbed his face with the palms of his hands in , then drew me in for a hug, kissing my forehead. "A baby..." He chuckled. I lifted my head to look at him and saw that tears had welled up in his eyes.

The happiness that poured out of his body made chills run down my spine, a feeling of excitement in my belly. I was so afraid to see his reaction, but this was nowhere near what I had imagined. "Yes, Steve, we're having a Baby America." I giggled, using Tony's words.

"Congrats!" Natasha started clapping her hands and stood up from her place at the dinner table, hurrying to pull us both in a hug. More cheers followed, with everyone coming to celebrate the little joy that came up in the middle of a world crisis.

"I know this is very sudden," I said to them, Steve holding me close to him with one arm around my waist, smile on his face and unable to hold back the tears of happiness, "but I think we all should take some time off after we take down Ultron. A vacay doesn't sound so bad."

"One more reason to kick his platinum ass." Fury added.

"Language." Steve couldn't help it, and everyone in the room laughed.

 

Later that night, when everyone was tucked in bed, Steve and I were laying under the covers in a rather small bed, compared to the one back at the Avengers Tower. He was holding me very close to him, arms wrapped around my body protectively. I glanced up at his face in the darkness on the room, only a faint moonlight coming through the window. He seemed to be deep in thought, so I softly caressed his cheek and the moved his eyes to look at me. "What's on your mind?" I whispered, brow lightly furrowed.

His chest rose up and then slowly lowered, his eyes moving back to the ceiling. "I'm worried." He replied honestly. 

I waited for him to continue, but when he didn't, I propped myself up on my left elbow and pecked his chin. "About the baby?" I asked him. Even though we spoke once about starting a family, we never actually took the thought seriously. We never even mentioned marriage, let alone the fact that we weren't even engaged, just... Together. We were just together.

His blue irises locked with my hazel ones again. "I know you're a fierce woman and that you can take care of yourself, but what if I ask you to back out of the whole avenging thing?" I was quite taken aback by his question, yet I the thought had crossed my mind in more than one occasion, this one in particular considering that I was pregnant. "You and the child can have a normal life."

I winced almost imperceptibly at the sound of that. "You know too well that 'normal' isn't part of our dictionary." I told him, but then again, what kind of life was really considered normal? "I am willing to dedicate my whole life to our child," my tone was serious and sincere, "but if you think I'm gonna let you fight the bad guys all by yourself, you're wrong."

"I'm not alone." He retorted, thinking about the Avengers.

"I know, that's why I'll always be by your side and support you, even if not for a physical fight." I told him, convinced of my words. 

Steve smiled softly and gave me a long kiss. "I love you, Viktoria." He said after we parted our lips.

We weren't ones to throw random 'I love you-s', so when we happened to tell each other, it was really meaningful. "We love you, Steve." I replied, using the plural.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ♡ Please, don't be afraid to talk to me, I encourage you to do so ♡


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> His guys! Had a rough week and I'm sorry if this chapter seems a bit crappy, also, I had little creativity with Steve's part, and it's mostly him during a scene from the movie, which I was hoping to avoid, but meh. *conflicted feelings about this chapter*
> 
>  
> 
> The last weekend I went to a party with all of my classmates and things were pretty amazing, until when I discovered at 5am (after leaving the club) that someone had stolen all the money that I had with me, which was quite a lot. It broke me, but thankfully my best friend was there to cheer me up and pay for the taxi to get back home (we were staying at her mother's apartment in another city, not even close to my actual home). But still, I can't help but think of how horrible some people. I feel better now, despite what has happened, I had fun.
> 
>  
> 
> I re-wrote this chapter a few times, even though I'm not yet satisfied with the outcome, I'm still posting it to keep things going. Hopefully I'll be more creative with the next one.
> 
> Anyway, stay classy and sassy ♡

**Viktoria's POV**

We woke up the next morning and had a rather silent breakfast. Something was going on, and I could tell that Ultron was the main cause. The light had yet to come out, and the kids in the house were sleeping, so we had to be quiet. Steve was changing into his Captain America suit while I sat on the edge of the bed, looking at him with a concerned expression. "Please, be careful." I told him, reaching out to grasp his left hand as soon as he had finished buttoning up. "If Ultron is there with Doctor Cho, then the Maximoffs will be there too."

"I know..." Steve murmured, trying not to think about them too much. "Go with Nick and Bruce, stay safe at the Tower." He said, almost sounding like an order.

I sighed softly, tightening my grip on his hand, then stood up from the bed and drew him in for a hug with my arms around his shoulders. I breathed in his scent and just relaxed my head in the crook of his neck. "You already know I'm gonna be worried, right?" I whispered and he laced his arms around my waist, running the palm up and down soothingly. I looked up at him and bit my bottom lip. "Listen, I know it's still early to think about our baby's future, but do you think..." I paused, not really sure if Steve would've have liked the idea, but my heart was excited. He furrowed his brow and tilted his head slightly, waiting for me to continue. "Do you think that Bucky would like to be the Godfather?" 

"I always thought he'd be the first one to have a kid..." Steve chuckled softly, looking caught up in his thoughts for a moment, but then smiled at me and nodded his head. "He would. And, we have to tell Phil too." Steve pecked my forehead and we parted when we heard Tony call for us from the other side of the bedroom door. "Duty's calling." His approval made me even happier. Besides the rest of things that needed to be done, we still had to find him, and I hadn't heard from Bucky in a long time.

We got out of the room and, before I could follow Steve to the living room, Fury appeared behind me. "Alkaeva." I turned to look at him and crossed my arms over my chest. He lowered his voice as he spoke. "I'm taking Banner back to New York."

I nodded. "I know, I'm coming too-"

"There's something I need to check, and I was hoping you could join me." He told me, and I furrowed my brow. 'Suspicious' was the word anyone would've used, but I was also curious. If he didn't say it right away, he wasn't that sure of it himself either, or so I thought. I took in a deep breath and was about to ask him something, but he continued, reassuring me. "It's not dangerous. If it were, I wouldn't have asked." I nodded once again and Fury walked past me, to speak with Tony and Steve.

Steve left for South Korea with Natasha and Clint, while I went to New York with Fury and Bruce. I couldn't stop thinking about what the ex-Shield Director told me, he must've had something up his sleeve, something that would've given us the upper hand on Ultron. After landing at the Tower, Banner left immediately for his lab, while we met with Maria in her office. She was surprised to see me there instead of being with the others, but didn't ask questions. "I've got the exact location on the Helicarrier." The woman told Fury, and I furrowed my brow.

"What Helicarrier?" I asked them, crossing my arms.

Fury took in a deep breath and put his hands on his hips, looking at me. "If the Avengers can't stop Ultron and his army of minions, assuming there's one, we should be ready with a backup plan." On the one hand, it sounded like a good plan, on the other hand, it annoyed me that he seemed to have little faith in my teammates. 

"There's no Shield, where'd you get the manpower?" I lowered my voice, as if not wanting anyone to hear us, but there was no one around.

"You'll see when we get there." He replied without adding further details. I did not have any other choice but trust him, well, I trusted more Maria than Nick. It took us a few hour to get to an old Shield facility and, when the door to the underground hangar opened to let the helicopter land, my eyes saw various people scattered on the top of a Helicarrier, moving equipment around. As soon as we touched ground, Fury was welcomed by ex-agents that once used to work for Shield. "I appreciate you joining us." Fury said to a man when they shook hands.

To say that I was confused would've been the wrong description of how I was feeling at that moment. My eyes narrowed immediately. "Why did you ask me to join you?" Fury must've had people to back him up right from the start. "What is it that I'm missing?"

"A source in Sokovia has informed us of suspect movements in the Hydra facility that you guys raided the other day." Maria crossed her arms over her chest and stepped closer to me.

I thought about it for a moment. If Ultron had the Maximoffs by his side, this meant that he could have only met them there. "The facility is equipped with advanced technologies for mass production, the ones meant to power the bots with the Scepter's magic." I said, then thought about the previous mission, trying to remember how close the base was to the populated area. "It's too close to the city. Whatever is going to happen, it'll involve civilian casualties, but Ultron doesn't care about that." I took in a slow and deep breath, knots forming in my stomach. I couldn't help but feel powerless for a moment, for leaving my friends to take care of things by themselves.

"We'll think about evacuating the city as soon as we get there, for now, we have to wait." Fury's expression became stiff and he laced his hands behind his back as we walked on the bridge of the carrier, where agents awaited for new orders.

 

**Steve's POV**

Everything made sense now. The Maximoff girl couldn't have been more right. If Tony had tried to use the Scepter to make Ultron, then why wouldn't he try to do it again? As soon as the Maximoffs and I got back to New York from Seoul, we entered the lab in the Tower, where Stark and Banner were. I didn't see nor Clint nor Viktoria there. "I'm gonna say this once. Shut it down." I told them when I saw them getting ready to upload some kind of program into the living person into the Cradle.

"Not gonna happen." Deadpanned Stark.

"You don't know what you're doing." I raised my voice, keeping a strong firmness to my words.

"And you do?" Asked Banner arching his eyebrows. "She's not in your head?" He pointed at the Maximoff girl with venom in his tone. He wasn't over the fact that she had played tricks on him.

I stepped forward, this had to be stopped. Not only they had created something that wanted to destroy the whole world once, but they were trying to do it again. "Banner, after everything that's happened-" All it took was a moment of distraction and the Maximoff boy suddenly appeared in the middle of the lab, a wired tube in his hands which, detached, made all the computers beep in alarm. 

The Cradle powered down and he let got of the wire. "No, no. Go on. You were saying?" He looked at Tony and Bruce, but a gunshot from under the glass floor was fired and Pietro fell down right through it.

"I'm re-routing the upload." Stark said, but as soon as he had moved closer to a computer, I threw my shield at all the devices to break them, try and prevent him from doing it. Before I could even put my eyes back on Tony, he had already equipped on one of his glove blasters, shooting me down. This could only get worse, I thought.

A blinding light suddenly appeared above the Cradle, and when I looked to see what was happening, I saw Thor with his hammer raised, calling for lightnings which struck the Cradle and the power of the machine overloaded, until what was inside came to life and broke free.

The red man created by Doctor Cho attacked Thor, but the Asgardian threw him away, towards the windows. I wished I could say that I did not believe my eyes, but more than shock, this was somehow expected to happen. I picked up my shield and got closer to Thor, but he raised his arm and silently asked me to stand back. What I thought was another threat, turned out to be an ally. With Viktoria being pregnant and Natasha gone, we needed all the help we could get. For some reason, the 'Vision' Thor spoke about had the same voice as Jarvis, only... More human and not robotic.

"Are you on our side?" I asked him skeptical, because I still had reasons to believe that this could only be something bad.

"I am on the side of life." The red 'Vision' replied, furrowing his brow as if it was that simple of an answer. "Ultron isn't. He will end it all."

"What's he waiting for?" Asked Stark, tilting his head at Vision.

"You." He said, meaning the rest of the Avengers.

"Sokovia. He's got Nat there, too." Said Clint. "If that's the case, we gotta move fast."

"There may be no way to make you trust me." Vision said, looking around the room for a moment, then turned to Thor and handed him his hammer. "But we need to go." We stayed in silence for a moment, shocked expressions on our faces. 

Oh, if Viktoria was here to see Thor's face. Priceless. "Three minutes." I broke the silence after a long moment, turning to the group in the room. "Get what you need. You two," I addressed the Maximoffs, "there's a locker room down the hallway, if you need to freshen up." As soon as the two nodded, I turned on my heels and went for the elevator.

"Where you going, Captain?" Banner's voice made me stop in my tracks. "Viktoria isn't here." When those words left his mouth, my head snapped back to look at him.

There was a deep crease between my eyebrows, a tight knot forming in my stomach. "What do you mean?" I asked him, concern settling on my features. I clearly asked her to stay out of trouble, but I guess trouble finds her first.

"She left with Hill and Fury, didn't say where they went." Banner replied.

My jaw tensed, and I had to go and get my phone, try and call her, but she wasn't picking up, and it took me some time to remember that, before we left yesterday, she had left her phone in our apartment below. "Who's this beauty?" Asked the Maximoff boy with a thick accent, a smug grin on his face.

A picture in his right hand that he waved at me. "Pietro, give it back." The girl snatched it from his hands and walked up to me, holding out her hand. "Sorry, he's not one to mind his own business."

I took the picture from her hand and gave a quick look at it. It was taken on New Year's Eve during one of Tony's parties, my arms were laced around Viktoria's waist and hers were around my shoulders, looking at each other with smiling faces just before the clock hit midnight. Pietro must've taken it from one of the lockers. "It's my girlfriend." I replied absentmindedly.

"You're worried because she's not here." Wanda said, and I looked up from the picture at her. Was it that obvious even to someone who didn't know me at all? "It's your thoughts," she brought up her hand to touch at her right temple, "they're all focused on her."

"Now you're the one who's not minding her own business, sister." Pietro put his arm around her. "But she's pretty, I would keep her close, if she was my girlfriend." The boy said adding emphasis on 'my', whilst nodding at the girl in the picture.

I gave him a narrowed glare, tempted to punch him. "Are you two ready?" They nodded. "Then let's go." I walked past them and slipped the picture in a secret pocket of the suit, hoping it would bring me some luck on the battlefield.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No but, seriously, writing is something special for me. When I'm having a rough time with life, writing, literally about anything, it just makes me happy. I consider it some sort of anger/stress reliever, and having the opportunity to share my work with you guys, who are really sweet cinnamon rolls, I just can't thank you enough for being awesome. So, thank you again. ♡


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need opinions, how did this chapter go? Was it good? I feel like I'm getting somewhere, but I'm not exactly sure where ahahah
> 
> By the way, I think I'm getting ill... and it's hot as hell here so I really don't know what's happening, my health bar is dropping as if I was in an RPG game. Not good at all, nuh-uh, the exams are nearing and I still have a shit-ton of things to study, plus a horrible essay to write for my very last examination. (Sorry for the inappropriate use of language, but I'm starting to feel overwhelmed)
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, I hope you like this chapter and tell me if there are things that need fixing, since I didn't proof-read it. The start is a bit sloppy?? If you know what I mean, not a great start in my opinion.

"Can anyone tell me why half of Sokovia is flying?" I asked in shock as I looked outside of the panorama glass on the bridge. We had received news that things had gone down as soon as the Avengers had arrived in the city, they tried to evacuate the people but it was already too late.

"It seems like the base is held together by a magnetic field created by the vibranium." One agent replied.

I glanced at Fury and Maria from my position and exchanged a silent nod. "Get the evacuation pods ready. Those who weren't assigned to the evac-help, ready your weapons." I spoke into my comm-link. It wasn't over yet, but I could finally let out a sigh of relief.

"How long before we establish a communication with the Avengers?" Fury asked. He was standing in his usual spot, two computer screens on his sides.

"They're up." Another agent replied.

 _"Where else am I gonna get a view like this?"_ As soon as I heard Nat's voice into my comm, my smile widened in happiness.

"Glad you like the view, Romanoff. It's about to get better." Fury spoke to her, then gave order to the pilots to lift up the carrier to the flying city's level.

 _"Fury, you son of a bitch..."_ I heard Steve curse and chuckled.

"Language, love." I said to him. "Told ya I would always watch your back." An agent informed us that the evacuation pods had just been deployed. Not only did we bring help, but we had also War Machine on our side. 

"Incoming!" I heard Maria yell and everyone's head snapped towards the tall windows. A robot crashed though the glass and hit the hard wall behind us, then crawled on the floor towards an agent that had thrown himself on the ground to avoid getting hit. I was too far away, so just unholstered one of my gun and threw it to Maria, who was closer to the bot, and she shot it a couple of times until it stopped moving.

My computer started beeping abruptly and my breath hitched in my throat. "The rock is slowing down its ascension. Tony, please tell me you know how to destroy it." 

_"Foxy,"_ I heard the billionaire's cheerful voice, the one he usually used when things were going south, _"about that vacation..."_ It was the last thing he said before the flying rock stopped ascending and suddenly fell down from the sky.

"Oh, no- Guys?" I shot up from my seat and run off the bridge, heading towards the outside platform, where the rest of the evacuation pods had just landed down. I just needed to make sure... "Steve!" Why wasn't he answering? I needed to know if he had made it. There were too many people, wounded and crying in pain, I pushed past them and just looked around with my heart beating fast in fright. My eyes caught on a flash of blue, without second thought, I darted through the crowd. As soon as he saw me, he let go of his shield and opened wide his arms, catching me as soon as I had crashed into him. "I was so scared for a moment- I thought I lost you-" I sobbed into the crook of his neck, holding him close just to make sure that he was real and he was okay.

Steve run the palms of his hands on my back, resting his right cheek on my head. He took in a deep breath, speaking exhausted. "Sorry, it's been one hell of a flight..." I chuckled and looked up at him. Without expecting it, Steve leaned down and gave me a long kiss. After we pulled apart, he rested his chin against mine. All the chaos around us seemed to disappear for a moment, it was just us. When the flying rock had begun falling down, I felt my soul being pulled down with it.

 _"Yeah, about that vacation,"_ I heard Tony's voice once again in my comm, and my lips curved up. _"I'll have a permanent one."_

 

It had been a few weeks since Sokovia and my belly bump was growing slowly. The more I looked at it in the mirror, the more I couldn't believe it. It would've been nice to take some time off and just go on a small vacation, but Steve has never been this busy before. The new Avengers were moved into a bigger facility, in Upstate New York, provided by none other than Stark Industries with the help of former Shield agents and scientists, who set up an official scientific research, along with military training and weapons development. With Tony and Clint retired, Thor gone back to Asgard and Bruce missing, we had to recruit new members.

I pulled on a large shirt after gazing for quite some time at myself in the mirror, then headed out of Steve and mine's bedroom, to the shared kitchen. Wanda was sitting by the counter, absentmindedly stirring her cereals in a bowl with her spoon. Even though we started off as enemies, no one deserved to go through something like she had. To lose what was left of your family hurt like hell. "Hey." I got close to her and she got startled, dropping the spoon on the floor. Before it could it the flat surface, I flicked my wrist and the object flew back up, slowly, into my hands. "If you don't like them, I could buy something else next time." I smiled softly and handed her the spoon.

"Oh, no, don't worry." She shook her head lightly. "I got lost in my thoughts." There was that accent that she tried to cover most of the time. "I like them." Wanda put the spoon back in the bowl and brought more Cap'n Crunch cereal with milk to stuff in her mouth.

I picked up an apple from a fruit basket on the counter and a knife from one of the drawers, then started peeling it. I thought back on what Clint had told me, to try and be there for her, make her feel welcome and loved. She needed it more than anything with her twin gone. I glanced at the box of cereal and put down the peeled apple and the knife, then picked up the box and threw it in the trash can under the sink with the apple peel. "Whoever got that, clearly meant it as a joke." I sighed. Wanda just looked at me in disbelief and put down the spoon, next to her unfinished bowl. "Here, this is healthier." The corners of my mouth curved up and she accepted the slices that I passed to her on a plate. "You should come with me and Nat, go shopping, have some girl time."

Wanda bit down on one apple slice and nodded slowly. She still had a hard time feeling part of the team, she was feeling lonely. "Maybe." That was a clear 'no'.

"Wanda," I said softly whilst leaning against the counter and she looked straight into my eyes, "I know what you're going through, but locking yourself here won't help." I sighed when she lowered her chin to gaze at her hands in her lap. "It takes time to heal, and the best way is to let other people in."

Her eyes watered up and she nodded, biting her bottom lip. "But I miss him so much!" The young girl sobbed. "I've never been alone before..." I made my way around the counter and pulled her in for a tight embrace.

"You're not alone, okay?" I whispered. She leaned her head on my shoulder and laced her arms around my waist. "I'll be your friend and your home."

"Viks, I'm ready to go if-" Steve appeared from the hallway and stopped in his tracks when he saw us. "Is everything okay?" He asked us.

Wanda and I parted. The girl quickly dried her eyes and smiled at him. "We're okay." Steve released a breath of relief. "Are you two going somewhere?" She nodded at our casual clothes.

I gasped. "Right! The ultrasound appointment!" I muttered, mentally cursing for having forgotten about it. "Are we on time?" I panicked, hoping the wouldn't arrive late.

Steve glanced at the time on his watch and shook his head. "If we leave now, we're gonna be on time."

"Can I come?" Wanda asked before we left. It caught us off guard, but after a quick exchange of glances with Steve, I nodded.

 

We were sitting in the waiting room at the Doctor's, my right leg wouldn't stop bouncing up and down from how anxious I was. There were a few pregnant women waiting too, some glancing up from their magazines to check out Steve, who finally put one hand on top of my right knee and squeezed softly. His comforting touch made me feel a bit better, but I was still feeling nervous. "Relax, Viktoria, everything will be fine." Wanda said next to me.

"Viktoria Alkaeva?" A nurse called for me and our heads shot up to look at the middle-aged woman. We stood up and she greeted us. "The Doctor is ready to visit you. They're family?" She nodded at Steve and Wanda.

"Yes, can they come with me?" I asked her hesitant.

The woman's smile faltered and her voice sounded apologetic. "I'm sorry, it's against our policy..."

"Oh..." Now I was definitely freaking out. "Alright," I looked at the to next to me and took in a long breath to calm my nerves, "see you later." I said and followed the nurse to the doctor's office.

Steve and Wanda sat back in their previous seats, both feeling a bit out of place among all of those pregnant women. "I thought you two were married." Wanda whispered to Steve.

He furrowed his brow whilst turning to look at the young girl. "Not yet..." The blonde replied.

Wanda smirked. "Well, are you going to propose any time soon while she can still fit in a dress?"

"What?!" Steve accidentally raised his voice and got scolded by a passing by nurse. "Wouldn't it be too soon?" It felt weird to ask that kind of question to someone younger than him. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Do you happen to know something that I don't?"

The girl shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and leaned back in her seat. "I may or may not have seen Viktoria and Natasha going through some wedding magazines." She said and the crease between his eyebrows deepened.

Steve thought about it for a moment. He let out a heavy sigh and leaned back in his seat too. He didn't tell anyone, but he had actually gotten a ring, like, a few months ago. What was he waiting for? He didn't know the answer himself. Not only did he admit to himself that waiting too long for something was against his favor, but he was doing it again, which was worse. "I've got a plan, but..." Steve said after a while of silence, catching Wanda's curiosity. "Can you keep a secret?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian finally posted on Instagram today and I shrieked like a happy whale. I love him. And his new beard. (but NoW IMaginE BUckY with a long-ass beard omgggod) 
> 
> \-->EvansStan Bearded!Bros<\--


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Major couple fight lol (now tell me how bad I am ahah)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, I just got ill, yay, life sucks.
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, here's another chapter, I think it's worth mentioning that there's some **cursing** here and there. Everything seemed so damn perfect, why not throw in some problems? ʕ ಡ ﹏ ಡ ʔ ... lol but do not worry, everything's gonna be fine (*＾▽＾)／ ...hopefully

It had been one week since I had found out the gender of Baby America, and since then I decided to keep the secret for myself. I thought it'd be fun to keep Steve on the edge for a while, more like a payback for being always busy and spending less time with me. I couldn't have been more happy, though. The idea of being a mother scared me at first, but as time went on and the belly grew, each day seemed like a daydream. The only downside was having to live in the New Avengers facility, more for protection than anything else, but this meant that Steve was 24/7 available for anything concerning the team... And Vision had yet to learn the concept of privacy. Unfortunately, the place that I had planned to get down in Brooklyn had already been sold to someone else.

"For the hundredth time- please stop asking me what the gender of Baby America is!" I raised my voice at Sam. I was so frustrated because they were driving me insane. Not only was everyone bugging me to know the gender, but they had made bets too! 

Sam stepped back with the palms of his hand up in an apologizing manner. "Alright, sorry, Viktoria."

I was sitting at the counter in the kitchen and leaned my elbows on the flat surface, to rest my head in my hands. After a heavy sigh, I looked up at him and shook my head softly. "I know you all want to know, but can you please wait a little bit longer? I'll tell you when the right time comes." Sam nodded his head and sat back behind the counter. "It's late, I should probably head to bed..." I murmured, checking the time on my phone.

"Can I ask you something?" I shot a death glare at the guy and he quickly said that it wasn't related to Baby America. "You're a great mentor to Wanda, but why do you avoid using your powers on the battlefield? I mean, I remember when I saw the news, back during the Battle of New York, that was some sick stuff."

I chuckled and just shrugged. "Wanda is powerful. I am too in my own way, but on the contrary, the amount of energy that I use is limited to a specific ability. Fire manipulation, telekinesis, healing and regeneration... The list is quite long. Oh, let's not forget about poor levitation skills." I snickered.

"That's why you concentrate on healing first..." Sam said, nodding to himself as if I had just cleared out some of his most excruciating doubts. "But wait, are you an actual fox, like the legends say?" I gasped almost imperceptibly at his second question and didn't know what to say.

"There you are..." We heard Steve enter the kitchen, still dressed in his Captain America suit, and I breathed out a sigh or relief. He went to grab a bottle of water from the fridge and gulped down half the content.

"Uhm, excuse me... What are you doing still dressed like that?" I raised my eyebrows at him and he looked at me in confusion, opening his arms to signal a silent question. "Yes, that. Why didn't you take it off _before_ leaving the gym?"

"Viktoria, this isn't the first time that I come here dressed like this!" Steve retorted as I stood up from the stool and crossed my arms, stepping closed to him. 

Sam's eyes shifted between the two of us before he realized a fight was about to start. It was rare, but not impossible. "Alright... Maybe I should go..."

In unison, both Steve and I said 'no'. Sam flinched in his seat, and just tried to look anywhere else besides at the two of us. "And now I'm telling you that it's bothering me." I said, sounding quite offended.

Who looked even more offended was Steve. "This is not the time to argue, Viktoria."

Oh, no, he shouldn't have said that. The cold way with which he pronounced my name was enough to make me explode. "No, this is exactly the time to argue, Steve." Yep, let's throw more oil on the fire. "The world won't fall apart if you take that damn thing off for one night!"

As soon as Sam saw Wanda approaching the kitchen from the hallway, he stood up and swiftly went towards her, making her turn around. "Bad timing, bad timing..." He repeated, while the girl just gave him a questioning look.

"I'm working my ass off to train the team, can't you see that?" Steve raised his voice, angrily slamming the bottle of water on the counter, spilling the liquid since he had not put the lid back on.

I jolted in slight shock. It wasn't like him to snap like that. I hadn't realized that I've been holding in my breath while my heart pounded harshly against the ribcage. "I know..." I released a shaky breath, still looking into his blue eyes. "But I need you too..." Realization drowned on his features, and he tried to grasp my hand, but I took a step back, shaking my head. "I thought I could live with the fact that you're so dedicated to the cause that you might neglect me, but this is too much."

"Viktoria-" Steve said, but I interrupted him.

"We both need some time apart." I said calmly, even though it really hurt to say that.

Steve's jaw tensed. Why did he have to raise his voice and be a jackass? He asked himself. "Don't say that..." His fingers touched my hand but I pulled it back immediately.

"Don't touch me!" I turned on my heels and headed towards the bedroom, slamming the door shut behind me and the walls shook slightly. 

"What happened here?" Natasha walked into the kitchen to find Steve just standing there with his head turned towards the hallway that led to the bedrooms. She sounded very concerned. "Steve, what was that all about?" She wasn't one to put herself on the front line when someone was arguing, but since the two screaming at each other were her best friends, that wasn't an option.

"Did you hear that?" Steve asked with a low voice, refusing to look at her.

"I guess the whole compound heard you!" She said, walking closer to him. She furrowed her brow at him when he still didn't turn his head to look at her, instead, he lowered his gaze at the floor and leaned against the counter like a beaten dog. The woman sighed in frustration and left him standing there while she went to look for me.

I heard the sound of quick paced footsteps and as soon as they stopped, a slow soft knock came at the door. "Nat?" I asked, running my fingers on my cheeks to dry the tears.

 _"Open up, babe. I promise it's just me."_ She said with a soothing voice.

I debated whether or not to open the door, but then just stood up from the bed and went to open the door. She slipped inside and let me lock the door once again. Her warm hands cupped my cheeks, thumbs stroking the flushed skin. "What happened?"

Another wave of tears took me over and I tightly shut my eyes, shaking my head. "We're just two complete idiots!" I muttered hurt.

"I've never heard you guys fight like that before..." Natasha said, snaking her arm around mine and drew me closed to the bed to sit down. "Remember what the doctor said? Avoid stressful situations."

I took in a sharp breath, the previous scene coming back to my mind and I felt even angrier. "That... Douchebag!"

Natasha's eyes moved from me to look around the room and she noticed that some stuff had lifted up, levitating in midair. "I know you're mad, but can you take a deep breath now?" She imitated a calm and controlled breathing pace and urged me to mimic her. The things in the room slowly levitated back to their original place and Nat actually took in a breath of relief. She had yet to see me lose control over my powers, but today wasn't that day. "Intense emotions are pretty common during pregnancies, even arguments between partners. So, whatever you and Steve said to each other, no matter what it is, everything's gonna be fine."

I looked at her eyes and found some comfort in that familiar green. What would've I done without her? "I hope you're right..." We stayed like that for a couple of minutes until she was sure that I was really fine. Before she decided to stand up and leave, I put my hands on top of hers and decided to tell her what I didn't reveal to anyone else. "It's a girl."

She stared at me in confusion for a few seconds before her eyes widened in surprise and she covered her gaping mouth. "Really?" She whispered in disbelief, one of her hands reaching to caress the belly bump hidden under my tight t-shirt.

"Yes... Promise you'll keep the secret?" I asked her and she nodded her head vigorously, drawing me to her for a tight embrace.

When we parted, the redhead run her hands up and down my arms, giving me a kind smile. "Don't worry, I'll talk to Steve-"

"No..." I shook my head, looking down at my belly bump and put my hands on top of it. "I said some really hurtful words to him, I should probably apologize... Tomorrow." Nat furrowed her brow, but then brushed it off. She knew that I was regretting it but, there was still that small part of me that firmly believed that I was right. "If he wants to come and sleep here, that's fine, otherwise, he's gonna sleep on the couch in the living room."

Stubborn woman, she thought. "Okay, Viks. You and my niece have a good night." She stood up, heading for the door. "Remember, no stress!" Nat said before she closed the door behind her.

 

I woke up the next morning to find and empty spot beside me, Steve's side of the bed was cold. I guessed he might've slept on the couch in the living room like I thought. After a quick shower, I dressed myself and headed out of the bedroom. It was pretty early in the morning, and I thought that no one had been up yet, so silently, I walked through the hallways and entered the living room, hopeful I'd find a sleeping Steve, but he wasn't there. I went back to the kitchen only to find a note attached to the fridge with a spider magnet. 

_We're on a mission. I made you some healthy breakfast for when you wake up. Nat_

My stomach growled in hunger and I decided to eat the breakfast first, then I'd send her a text to thank her. It was the first time that they had left without waking me up, I couldn't help but feel awful remembering what had happened last night. Just as I was about to bite down on another slice of peeled apple, I felt a movement inside of me and dropped the food back into the plate. It was so sudden that my arms wrapped protectively around my swollen belly in an instant. I gasped when I felt my baby girl move once again, then she settled in a more comfortable position.

Without second thought, I picked up my phone and typed in a quick text, hitting 'send' so fast I did not even check who I sent it to. _The baby has moved for the first time!_

It didn't take long before the answer came back. _WHAT BABY VIKTORIA???_

Capital letters? I narrowed my eyes at the screen and slapped my right hand on the forehead when I read Coulson's name on top of the display. "Oh, God! He doesn't know yet!" Steve and I were planning on meeting with him and tell him in person, this was just too fucked up now. How could I screw up that bad? _Relax. Just checking if you're still alive._ I replied, hoping Phil would just think of it as a joke.

 _Viktoria..._ I received another text back. _Are you pregnant??_

I sighed in defeat and decided to call him instead. As soon as he had picked up, I spoke. "I am, like... 16 weeks or something."

 _"And you're telling me just now."_ My father spoke with a cold tone, sounding offended.

"Steve and I wanted to meet you and tell you in person-" I tried to explain, and he squealed on the other side of the line, before silence followed. "Phil? Phil!" I panicked.

I stretched my hearing and tried to pick more sounds. I could barely make out the faint sound of a pair of shoes pacing back and forth. _"I can be in New York tonight."_ Coulson finally replied.

"The team is away on a mission." I informed him, thinking that if they didn't come back sooner, I'd meet with Coulson alone. "Anyway... Just tell me the address and I'll meet you there."

As I expected, the guys were still on a mission. I went to talk with Maria just to make sure that were doing fine, and she reassured me. Before heading out to meet with Phil, I left a note on the fridge, saying that I'd be out late, just in case the team got back before me. I drove to the meeting spot and parked the car in a back alley, right behind a restaurant. Coulson was waiting for me right there and, as soon as I got out of the vehicle, our smiles grew wide. "Let me look at you..." He said after we parted from a long hug. His eyes watered at the sight of the small belly bump showing behind a tight fitting sweater. "Is something wrong? Want to talk about it over a nice dinner?" He asked after I stayed silent for a while.

"I had a horrible fight with Steve..." I told Phil, while poking the steak in the plate with the fork. "And it's rare for us to do it."

Phil cleaned the sides of his mouth with a napkin and then thought about it for a moment. "And you haven't sorted things out yet?" I shook my head in response. "Give it time, it's normal to argue once in a while. Even Audrey and I had some little fights, but we always made up."

I was about to say something, but then my tongue tied and I had to bit my bottom lip in frustration. "I was not prepared... for this!" I whispered, my expression sad. "I spent all of my life just fighting and doing reckless things." I didn't express my bottled up feelings to anyone, but I knew I could rely on Phil's support, since he's always been there for me right from the start. He never lied to me. "I feel powerless." My already low voice cracked towards the end, and I shook my head at myself.

Phil reached for my hand from the other side of the table and put hit on top of mine, to give me some comfort. "Why don't you come with me for some time? Maybe you'll feel better if you leave the Avengers for a while."

He wasn't that wrong either, maybe what I needed now was a pause, away from the superhero life. "I can't just leave Steve and the others." I shrugged. "Even if a change of environment might be good... I can't."

He squeezed a bit his fingers around my hand and I looked up at him. "I know you too well, Viktoria. But you can't always put other people's needs before yours. Right now you need to think about yourself and your child. If they love you, they'll understand."

I let out a soft sigh, slumping down my shoulders. "You're right..." I smiled at him, trying not to look too sad.


	23. Her name is...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooooohoooo seee what I did there?? This might seem like something thrown there on purpose and it might actually be. I wanted to put some of these things written in different chapters, but then just started writing and everything came together. Long story short, I rushed to the good part and might edit what's in between someday (or maybe not, depending on your opinion.)
> 
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> 
> Anywayyyyy I hope you like this chapter and leave some comments, tell me if you liked it or not, if there is something that needs revising or editing in general. Didn't proof read, so forgive me if there are (there surely are) mistakes/typos and stuff.
> 
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> 
> Good night y'all, thank you for reading it! ♡

Something shuffled in the room and I woke up startled, squinting my eyes in the darkness only to catch a shadow moving slowly across the bedroom, towards the door. I reached immediately for the lamp on the nightstand and switched the light on, the figure stopped before closing the fingers around the handle of the door. "Steve?" He turned around to look at me, caught on spot. I noticed the clothes he held in his other hand, which he probably took from the wardrobe to change.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." He whispered, averting his gaze.

I could tell he was going to sleep in the living room again, and decided to speak up. "Can we make peace? I'm really sorry for what I have said to you the other night." I really meant it. I shouldn't have overreacted that way, plus in front of Sam. "I was... mad, for no reason."

Steve's chest rose after taking in a deep breath, then he sighed softly. "You were right, actually..." He admitted, surprising me.

I didn't say anything about it, just patted lightly on the spot next to me in bed and moved the bedsheets. Steve changed into fresh clothes and slipped under the covers beside me, while I hesitantly laid my head on his chest and his left arm wrapped around my waist, keeping me close to him. "She has moved yesterday morning..." I muttered.

Steve's brow furrowed and he looked down at me. "Who's she?" He asked confused.

Lifting my head to get a better view of his expression, I smiled at him. "Our daughter."

"It's a girl?" He breathed out in disbelief, eyes blinking a few times, trying to avoid the tears that were forming. I nodded and gently grasped his hand to rest it on my swollen belly. 

"Whoever betted on a boy, well... They lost the bet." I giggled. "Now Baby America needs a good name." Steve chuckled and leaned in to kiss all around my face.

 

I was standing in the middle of the gym, waiting for Wanda to arrive for her training. She saw me standing there with a smirk on my face and my arms crossed. "Good morning." I greeted her.

She tied her hair while squinting her eyes at me with a suspicious smirk. "Any reason why you're here?" She asked me. "I thought I was going to train with Steve."

"Steve and Natasha are out." I shrugged nonchalant. "Today's my turn to mentor you." I stepped aside and something metallic that was hidden behind me caught her attention. "It's a bomb, and time's ticking." Her smile disappeared when she saw 'Stark Industries' written in capital letters, a digital clock showing less than five minutes till the explosion.

"Viktoria, what is this supposed to mean?" She tried not to panic, but her expression betrayed her.

I let my arms slip down to my sides and moved to stand next to her, looking at the bomb. "Use your powers to contain the explosion."

When the times hit three minutes, Wanda immediately raised her hands and a red energy field formed around the bomb, but it wasn't strong enough to withhold the explosion. I could tell that her whole behavior had changed. The fact that the words 'Stark Industries' were written on top of it meant that all she could think of was the day her parents died.

"Breath, Wanda." I said with a firm voice. "If you can't work under pressure, then you can't trust yourself out on the field." The girl gritted her teeth, trying to close the field around the bomb, but it suddenly disappeared when the timer hit thirty second.

"I know..!" Wanda growled, breaking her stance, but quickly resumed it whilst raising her hands again, and another red field appeared around the object. This time, she appeared to be more concentrated, biting the inside of her cheeks to focus on a physical pain instead of a memory. It worked... At least until the countdown reached five seconds, and the field disappeared once again. She gasped in shock and braced herself for the impact, but when the timer hit zero, the top part of the bomb opened and a flag popped out with 'boom' written onto it.

It took her a long time to squint her eyes open, mouth agape, only to realize that the bomb was actually fake. "I'm not that cruel to use a real bomb." I said softly, patting her back, before walking to the fake device and gave it a light kick, the flag automatically disappeared inside of the small box.

Wanda was still paralyzed in shock, unable to process the fact that it was actually a fake bomb and not a real one. "You tricked me." She whispered in disbelief. "Why did you do that?" The girl sounded offended, as if I had betrayed her trust.

I took in a long breath and crossed my arms over my chest once again. "Because things like this," I nodded at the fake bomb, "they can trigger painful memories and paralyze you. Just like now." I explained to her. I probably should have told her what I was planning to do, but I also wanted to see her reaction first. Of course, I spoke to Steve about this beforehand, so that there wouldn't have been problems of misunderstanding. "You know your fears, and that's good, but you have to deal with them too."

She looked down at the floor, closing her hands into fists by her side, then slowly relaxed the tension in her body. "Again." She said after a moment, looking up at me and nodded. "I want to try again."

"That's why we're here." I smiled, the walked back to stand behind her. "Initiate countdown." The timer on the device reset and it started ticking once more. "That's enough for today." I said after some time of Wanda's training. She let her hands fall to her sides and she sighed exhausted. "You did a good job." I patted her on the back and smiled to her.

"But I failed every time." She retorted with a furrowed brow.

"Perseverance is the key to success. Right, Vision?" I turned around and saw the red man standing by the doorframe of the gym. He tilted his head to the side, unsure how I was able to tell that he had been standing there for the past ten minutes. "I think he has a soft spot for you..." I whispered to the girl and she gasped, her cheeks changed color pretty fast. "You two should have an ice cream, or something else." I giggled, then left the gym to go to the Avengers private area.

My phone buzzed in the pocket of my hoodie and I pulled it out to look at the screen. An unknown number. "Hello?" I answered, fitting the phone between my shoulder and ear while searching for some snacks in the cupboards of the kitchen.

 _"It's me."_ That was enough to let me drop the KitKats on the counter and hold the phone with both of my hands, pressed really close to my ear. His voice was low, almost too grumpy.

My heart skipped a beat and a smile made its way on my lips. "Hey... I'm so happy you finally decided to call me." I said without thinking it through, I just wanted to let him know that I missed him. "Is everything okay?"

I could hear him inhale deeply and then exhale slowly. _"I am."_ Again with the monosyllabic answers... _"I saw your team on the newspaper."_ Bucky said, making me furrow my brow. _"Did you leave them?"_ I didn't know why, but for some reason I got the feeling as if he was interested in knowing what was I doing with my life now.

"I don't do those things anymore..." I replied, sitting down at the counter, one of my hands absentmindedly stroking my growing belly.

 _"Why?"_ Bucky asked immediately, sounding impatient to know the answer.

There was a pause from my side and I glanced down at my belly. I hesitated before answering his question. "Because I'm pregnant... Steve and I are having a daughter." Even if for a slight moment, I could imagine his current expression, the one with the tensed jaw and a deep crease between his eyebrows, eyes starting down at his feet. "What would it take me to convince you to come back?" I asked him when he didn't say anything else. "Trust me when I tell you that _we_ ," meaning Steve and I, "will protect you no matter what might happen, okay?"

 _"Viktoria, I can't risk coming back. And now that you're-"_ Suddenly he was interrupted when a digital female voice spoke over his, in a foreign language, asking to insert more coins to keep on talking.

The line went down shortly after the interruption, and it took me a second to realize where he was hiding. I stood up from the stool in the kitchen and hurried to get to Steve and mine's bedroom, where he kept his data-pad with the team's missions on. As soon as I logged into the last report, I read that they had been to Europe, in Romania specifically. I found him, I thought, one hand immediately going to cover my gaping mouth. He said that he saw the Avengers on the newspaper... Bucky must've called me from a telephone booth. "Oh-!" The data-pad dropped to the floor as soon as I gasped, feeling the baby suddenly move and give her first kick.

"Viktoria?" I felt Steve's arms wrap around me when he saw me bent on my knees, palms of my hands cupping my swollen belly. He must've just gotten back.

"I'm alright..." I took in a sharp breath and tried to stand straight, but she kicked again. "Oh, that hurts!" Steve helped me step closer to the bed and I sat down, trying to steady my breathing.

Steve crouched on his knees in front of me and he put his warm hands on top of mine. "What's wrong?" He asked me concerned, eyes shifting from the round belly to my hazel eyes.

After a short moment, when the ache lessened, I started giggling and earned a furrowed gaze from Steve. "I didn't know that babies could kick that hard..." I said between giggles, and the blonde relaxed his expression, shaking his head lightly. "Give it a few years and she'll kick harder than you."

As soon as the giggles died down, Steve leaned closer to the belly and whispered. "Hey, sunshine." He smiled softly, then glanced up at my face for a second. "Mom says you've got a strong kick..." I pulled my hands from underneath his and slipped my fingers through his blonde locks, stroking his hair. "I actually think it's a trait you got from her." He chuckled, but then was left speechless when he felt something poke into the palm of his hand and a small groan escaped my mouth. 

"What are you two doing?" Natasha appeared at the door of our bedroom and just stared at us in confusion. Her eyebrows arched as soon as she realized that something was happening with Baby America. "Is the baby kicking?" The redhead shrieked, crossing the room in an instant to crouch down beside Steve.

"Who's kicking?" Wanda asked with Vision next to her, both of them standing where Nat had been just moments ago.

"Whoa, it's getting crowded..." I murmured, feeling Natasha's hand take Steve's place and she gently rubbed my covered belly.

"Okay, I know you're all excited, but can you give us some space, please?" Steve stood up and turned around to look at the three intruders.

Natasha pouted when she didn't feel the baby kick back and sighed sadly. "I was so excited. You're mean..." She pointed one finger at the Captain and then turned around to leave.

As soon as Steve made sure that the door was closed this time and the two of us were alone, he walked back to me and crouched down once again, but only on one knee this time. "Come on," I looked down at the belly and twitched my lips, "you could've let her a little bit longer to-" I stopped talking when I raised my eyes and saw him holding out a velvet black box with a ring inside of it, a small diamond shining in front of my eyes. "Steve?"

He took in a deep breath and looked me straight in the eyes. "I got it a few months ago, and like the temporizer that I am, always waiting for the right moment, I ended up again waiting too much." Steve said. I was at a loss for words, unable to actually process that he had wanted to propose since who knows when. I didn't expect it any time sooner either. "We've been through a lot together, and I want you to know that I really love you. There's no other person that I want to spend the rest of my life with." 

I just stared at him in shock. My lip quivered, and I had to bit down on it. "Are you sure?" My tongue moved faster than my brain and I had to rub my eyes to make sure that I wasn't dreaming.

"I'm down on one knee with a ring in my hands, I'm pretty damn sure I'm proposing to you just right now." He said confidently, maybe a bit of sarcasm too in his voice. He took out the ring from the box and asked for my hand. "Viktoria Alkaeva Coulson, will you marry me?"

"Yes!" I squealed too fast, and had to repeat it slowly a second time when he arched one eyebrow and smiled with wide teeth. "Yes, Steve Rogers, I will marry you." He gently grasped my left hand and slipped the round object on my ring finger, and my lips found his shortly after. "Wait!" We parted and I looked confused for a second. "I gotta tell dad about this."

"Selfie?" The blonde smirked and I nodded vigorously. He sat next to me and pulled out his phone, getting the camera ready to take a picture. I raised my hand to display the ring and smile brightly, leaning into his shoulder. "What do I text him?" Steve asked me, since he had Coulson's number too.

"Future Mrs. Rogers!" I put emphasis on each word and he shook his head playfully, hitting send. My happiness didn't last long, because Bucky popped in my mind once again, and I couldn't help but feel an ache in my chest.

After all of the things that I've done, how come I got so much love yet Bucky was the one to suffer the most? And it was mostly because of me. I did not deserve it.

 

It had been a few months since I had heard Bucky, and on that same day Steve had proposed to me. I was having a baby shower at the compound, and I would only reveal the gender of the baby to the guests after opening all of the gifts. I didn't have that many friends, that was I didn't want to have a baby shower in the first place, but Natasha had insisted on it, saying that she's invite only the closest...

Of course besides Nat and Wanda, Maria was there too, Tony's girlfriend Pepper, Doctor Helen Cho and Laura Barton, who I happened to know better over the last few months. "Alright, ladies, tonight is a very special night." Natasha spoke, holding out her glass of champagne while smirking at the guests.

They were all dressed in fancy dresses, whilst I had on a somewhat less fancy one, because my belly made it quite a challenge to wear something elegant and still feel comfortable. "We're finally ready to let you know the gender of Baby America and tell you the name." I smiled and they clapped their hands.

"But first," Natasha set down her glass and picked up one random gift box from a table in a corner of the living room, "the gifts." She handed me a yellow and red box and I glanced at Pepper.

The blonde smiled and rolled her eyes playfully. "Tony insisted on participating."

Impatiently, I tore the wrapping paper and removed the lid from the box, revealing a set of colorful onesies, all with various writing on the front. "Mommy rocks." I giggled when I read the first one. "Is that-?" I gasped, picking out of the box one specific onesie. "A Captain America onesie?" The ladies in the room laughed, and my heart filled with delightful joy. "Thank you, Pepper, say thanks to Tony from me." She nodded, and I proceeded to open the rest of the gifts, until there was only one left, but it appeared to be an extra gift. "Who's this from?" I looked around, but no one replied. It was wrapped meticulously with a black and white striped paper, a white bow on top of the lid. I carefully tore the paper and removed the lid to peek inside of the box.

"So, what is it?" Wanda asked from her seat, leaning forward to get a better view.

I fully removed the lid and picked up the soft baby bib. It was white, with light pink letters on the front, saying 'Princess'. "Did any of your know?" I asked in disbelief, amazed by the beautiful bib.

All of the women looked at each other and shook their heads. I smiled and showed them what was written on top of the bib, their faces lit up in wide smiles. "It's a girl?" Maria asked, almost sounding disappointed. She must've been one of those people who bet on the baby being a boy.

If no one of them really knew and this was an extra gift, who had sent it to me? I had a clue, but then decided to push the thought aside and stood up from my seat, rubbing the belly with one hand whilst still holding the bib in the other. "It's a girl, and her name is Rebekah Natasha Rogers."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg please, I really need some honest opinions about this one.
> 
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> By the way, I didn't expect this part to be soooo many chapter's long, so I was thinking about ending at 24 and start a new part in the series. It's just what I've been thinking, cause I did say in the Series' description that each part should be around 10 chapters long (something that I've exceeded a long time ago...) So, it you see that the next chapter is the last, don't panic, there will be a new part in the series coming right after this one.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Graphic description of birth**. Someone might be okay with it, but I also know people who don't like that kinda stuff. Continue reading only if you don't mind that kind of description.
> 
> Hello, lovelies! This is the last chapter of this part, and I'm posting the new work so you can have a slight idea on what's gonna happen next. I do hope you liked this story throughout the series and I really want to thank you for sticking up with me! I really appreciate your support.
> 
> Without further ado, enjoy your reading! ♡

One night I kept tossing and turning in bed, and no position was comfortable to help me fall asleep, I felt weird aches in my whole body too. But it wasn't just that I could not settle on one side, each time I closed my eyes, I would dream of terrible things happening, another fight and another war waiting behind the door. "Viks..?" Steve mumbled in the darkness of the room, his hand reaching under the blankets to run the palm on my back. He felt the damp fabric of my nightgown and sat up on the mattress. "Viktoria?" Steve called a bit louder after switching on the light on on the nightstand, then shook gently my shoulder to wake me up. M breath hitched for a moment and I shot my eyes open, glancing around the room, until I saw a pair of sleepy blue eyes stare down at my hazel ones. I released a shaky breath. "You're covered in sweat..." He said, running his thumb on my cheek. "Were you having another nightmare?"

I took in a deep breath and asked him to help me and sit up. "Every time I looked down..." I paused, bringing my hands to rest on my big belly bump. "She wasn't here." I whispered and looked away.

Steve furrowed his brow and leaned closer to me, drawing me in an embrace. "You know nothing bad's gonna happen, right?" Steve said softly into my ear. "I'll alway be there to protect my girls." He smiled, pecking my cheek.

I lifter up my chin and looked at him, smiling back. "I'll hold onto that promise, Rogers." After a long moment just sitting like that, in each other's arms, the lower part of my back started aching, a bit stronger than it usually did. I let out a heavy sigh and my expression contorted in pain. "Gosh, I don't think I can fall asleep..." I told him after glancing at the digital clock on the bedside table, which displayed the time around four in the morning.

"Do you want me to get you a glass of water?" Steve offered, already getting out of bed.

I put one hand on my belly and felt something like a contraction, the womb hardened whilst the muscles contracted. I gasped when I felt a wave-like cramping that built in intensity to a peak, before fading away. "I think she want to come out." I muttered, staring blankly in front of me.

Steve felt as if his knees would give out under his weigh, he stumbled towards my side of the bed and crouched down, looking at me with wide eyes. "Are you sure? It's like, two weeks before your due date." He said hesitant.

I felt another wave, stronger than the first, and nodded. "Well, something is happening!" I squealed when the contraction reached its peak. Bekah was supposed to be born in at least two weeks, but apparently she wanted to come out now.

"What do I do?" Steve panicked, shooting up on his feet and he started looking around for his phone, but hit his little toe on the foot of the bed and cursed under his breath.

"I'm the one who should be panicking, babe, not you!" I raised my voice when I realized that I was in labour.

The door to our room was abruptly busted open and Natasha in black silk pajamas stepped in, looking at us with half closed eyelids. "What's happening?!" Her room was right in front of ours, so it was natural that she'd hear us.

I felt something wet pool between my legs and quickly pulled at the bedsheets to look under my nightgown, my heart skipped a beat. "My waters broke!"

"What?" The redhead asked in disbelief. "Rogers, why are you standing there doing nothing? We need to get her to the hospital!"

"Too late for that, don't you think?!" I told her, feeling my breathing quicken up.

Steve was in complete shock, I've never seen him so lost. "Then we'll call for a doctor!" He said, finally picking up his phone, but then again, he didn't know who to actually call.

"Ah-!" Both Natasha and Steve's heads turned sharply when they heard me shriek in pain. The contractions became more powerful and more frequent, coming one on top of another. The sensation of tightening built to a peak, starting to fade, and then quickly built to a second peak before fading too.

Natasha hurried by my side of the bed and helped me lay down on the mattress. "Alright, I know this is frightening, but you have to breath." She said, and I nodded, trying to steady my breathing by following hers.

"Viktoria?" Wanda appeared at the door to the bedroom and understood right away what was happening. She too must've woken up by the screams and yells coming from our room. The girl's head turned to the hallways outside of the room and spoke to someone, then got inside and closed the door behind her. "We need warm water and towels." She told Steve, who nodded and went in the bathroom, while came to stand next to Natasha. "Hey, don't worry, we're here to help." She flashed a reassuring smile, but as much as I wanted to stay calm, the pain was getting worse.

After taking in a sharp breath, I let out a long wail of suffering. It felt like a fire burning in my lower part of the body, and I knew that Bekah wanted to get out, her kicks made it pretty clear.

Natasha run her head on my sweaty forehead and gently moved away the few stray lock from my face. "I know it's gonna be hard, but I need you to move your hips towards the edge of the bed." I tried to do as she asked, with their help, but another wave of contractions hit, and I laid back down. "Change of plan." Natasha said quickly, sitting at the bottom of my feet and helped me bent my legs and she moved away the skirt of my nightgown, pulling down the panties.

We had everything planned for when the due date was about to come, but we were absolutely not prepared for this kind of situation. I was not prepared for this. Do you want me to fight some aliens? Fine, I'll do it. But giving birth? This was something on a whole new level. I wanted all the agonizing to end. Right here. Right now.

My fingers closed tightly around the wet fabric that covered the mattress and I growled. "Do whatever you need to do, just get her out!"

Natasha widened her eyes in shock and spread my legs. "You don't have to say it twice." She checked if it was time to start pushing, but I wasn't ready yet down there. "Keep breathing, babe, you're doing a great job!"

"That doesn't make me feel any better!" Just as I said that, Steve was back in the room and had brought with him tons of towels and a bowl - God knows where he found it - full of warms water. The look on his face when he saw me agonizing was enough to make him feel terrible for what I was going through. Tears slipped down my cheeks as fast pants left my lips. This was going to take long.

Around one hour later of powerful contractions, Natasha finally told me to start pushing. "I see her head!" The redhead told me. "Come on, give me another strong push!" I took in a deep breath and my expression contorted as I begun pushing once again, feeling Bekah move further down my belly. Steve was holding my right hand, probably being crushed by so much force that I had put onto it.

"Fuck!" I growled when I stopped pushing, then just kept on panting irregularly. "How much longer?" I asked. I could not believe how much pain went women through everyday all around the world.

"You're doing great, love." Steve tried to encourage me, but I wasn't having any of it.

My head snapped towards him and my brow furrowed in clear anger. I wasn't mad at him, but the feeling of being ripped in half was driving me insane. "I love you, Steve, but shut up!"

"Uhm, guys?" Wanda said from next to Natasha, whilst looking around the room. Some things had lifted up, levitating in midair, just like a couple of months ago when Steve and I had a bad fight.

"It's me, but I'm not controlling it." I told the girl. The pain was so strong that I my body had to take it out some other way. When Natasha gave me another nod, I gathered all my might and started pushing again, more stuff lifting up in the room.

"Good girl! Just a bit more!" Natasha yelled, but her voice was overpowered when a loud cry broke after I felt a huge weigh being finally released from my body. "Attagirl!" 

The stuff floating in the room suddenly fell down to the floor, following a few loud crashing sounds of broken glass. I wearily looked around, searching for the source of that powerful wailing voice, and when I found her, my lips cracked in a shaky smile. Natasha gently put the baby wrapped in a towel in my arms and I immediately pulled her close to my chest, kissing her forehead. "My precious..." I was crying in happiness, the previous pain and suffering forgotten as soon as I was finally holding her, listening to her crying... "I love you so much!" I giggled when Rebekah's voice slowly lowered, until she was calm. "Look, dad, our Princess!" I whispered at Steve, and saw that he was crying silently, trying to dry away the tears, but the more he did that, the more kept flowing.

"I love you..." Steve murmured, leaning to kiss me and rest his forehead against mine. "I love you both."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do apologize for the short chapter, but what better way to end a chapter with a "I love you"?? ♡
> 
> You can find the next story in [Peace is just a Temporary State of War](http://archiveofourown.org/works/11160228/chapters/24906291).

**Author's Note:**

> ♡ Please, don't be afraid to talk to me, I encourage you to do so ♡ Feedback is always appreciated (:
> 
>  
> 
> **Any resemblance to real events and/or real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental. I don't own Marvel characters nor the story, just my OFC. This is purely fanfiction and the imagination of a fangirl. I love and respect the creators and Marvel.**


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